Mind Games
by Ms Hobgoblin
Summary: I.R. unwittingly get involved with a group who want more than just their technology.When someone goes missing, its a race against time to find him. But will he want to be found? Thunderbirds are GO....
1. Chapter 1

This is my first Thunderbirds story.

I hope to do them justice, and I am following the TV show, keeping as close to character as I can. For this story the boys ages are :-Scott 26, John 25, Virgil 24, Gorden 22, Alan 21.

Thunderbirds do not belong to me, I am only borrowing them for a short time. Any characters you do not recognise are a figment of my imagination. F-A-B.

**Chapter 1**

"Hey, ease off the gas a little will you!" the grey haired, uniformed man half warned, half teased the driver of the dark blue 'Ship security' armour plated van "We don't want to go over the edge".

Laughter echoed in the cab of the security van as the young blond haired woman took her foot slightly off the accelerator "Okay Jacob, keep your toupee on!"

Swatting her shoulder playfully, the kindly old guard answered "Sarah, this is your first time driving this route. These wagons are hard enough to drive without putting extra pressure on the steering by taking these corners like a racing driver, especially in these wet conditions. Don't push her too hard".

Sarah glanced in his direction, still smiling "Okay 'granddad' but we're already way behind schedule, I thought I'd catch up on time", her eyes drifted from the road to the clock "Speaking of which, shouldn't we have radioed in? You want me to do it?"

"Nah, I've got it covered".

Jacob already had the communicator in his weathered hand. Holding it up to his mouth he opened a channel "Galleon 6 calling Lighthouse. Do you read? Over."

"Galleon 6, this is Lighthouse. What is your position? Over." The connection was crackled with interference.

"Heading south on route 4AX10. Checkpoint 11 estimated in 56mins. Over."

"Understood Galleon 6. Over and out."

Putting down the receiver, Jacob looked out the gap where a window should have been, but instead the armour plating covered it all, but for a small slit about an inch wide.

He had travelled this road for 35 years, it was the windiest way through the mountains, but few travelled this way, making it perfect for the Security Company he worked for. Its views were spectacular, sheer drops down into the depths beyond. White cliffs and solid grey rock was all around them. There was only one way in and one way out of these mountains, alive that is. This was his last assignment, and he wanted it to go smoothly.

He was brought out of his thoughts when he felt the van suddenly jerk sideways and Sarah gasp in surprise, her hands clutching the controls to steady the wheels.

"What the hell was that?" Jacob shot out at Sarah angrily "I told you to slow down!".

"I did!" She retorted "A car swerved out at me from nowhere, I just avoided us ramming into it!"

Jacob ran a hand down his face, "Where's the car now? What did it look like?" He looked out the front windscreen trying to see through the mist, but the vehicle had vanished around the next bend.

"No idea, it was black, must have been doing about 50 miles an hour!" she exclaimed.

"Hm" Jacob looked more alert now, and kept shifting his vision from the front window to the mirrors at the side of the van. "Keep driving carefully. Our cargo may have attracted a bit of attention, but it could have just been thrill seekers."

Sarah's eyes widened "You think that ….?"

"Maybe" he left the unasked question hanging.

They drove on in silence for a couple more miles, carefully winding and twisting along the tricky road, the van's engine roaring under them.

"What's that noise?" Sarah suddenly broke the air between them "It sounds like it's above us".

They both tried to see, but due to the poor visibility of the van, and the mist of the mountains, they could see nothing.

"What the hell is that?" exclaimed Jacob as the humming became louder and closer, Sarah felt the steering go as the invisible object knocked into them, "Shit!" cried out Sarah as the van began to snake across the road, almost out of control.

"Slow down, ease her off gently," shouted Jacob, his heart beating hard in his chest with fear of going over the edge, he couldn't help but yell at her.

Then, as they regained control of the van, a huge black Hummer appeared beside them. It came out of nowhere and rammed into them, pushing the van into the cliff wall. The scraping sound of metal on metal, and metal on rock and Jacob's and Sarah's panicked screams could be heard as the Hummer squeezed them into a standstill.

Letting out a long shaky breath, Sarah looked sideways into the window of the Hummer, its dark tinted window still intact. She could not see inside.

Jacob was already radioing for help. "Lighthouse, Lighthouse, this is Galleon 6. We are under attack; I repeat we are under attack. Over".

The reply was instant. "Galleon 6 report your status. Over" but the reception still not as clear as Jacob would have liked it.

"Two unmarked vehicles. We have been immobilised. Need urgent assistance. Location is 30 minutes from checkpoint 11. Over".

"Galleon 6, we …. send……forcements….d…ou….opy? Over"

Jacob looked at Sarah as she grabbed his arm, pointing upwards with her other hand. "Lighthouse, you are breaking up. We are under siege. Standing by for back up. Over".

The humming of a helicopter was right on top of them again, and then it faded into the distance. "What's going on out there?" Sarah whispered to Jacob.

Silence.

Then they heard something being clipped on to the back of the van.

"Oh my God, they're going to ….." Sarah never finished her sentence.

BANG.

The explosion threw the van forward, pushing the Hummer out of the way like a toy. The sound echoed around the mountains. Then there was silence again.

Sarah hit her head on the side door and was instantly knocked out, blood trickling down her face and onto her uniform, while Jacob's airbag had managed to save him from a similar fate.

Reaching out with a shaking arm, Jacob felt for a pulse on Sarah's neck. Then he heard movement from behind.

Someone was climbing into the back of the van.

TBTBTB

"Do you 'ave et in your sight yet?" The woman's voice was soft, with a slight French accent. She was concerned that the Ship Security's armoured van had yet to pass. "No. It's late, or it's not coming," was the gruff answer over the walky-talky.

She was sat in the passenger seat of a black Mercedes, a slight frown creasing her beautiful, creamy coloured face. Her hair was ginger and her cheeks were blushed with freckles. Her accomplice was a thin, wiry man with a very shifty look in his eyes.

The deal the lady had set up was worth a fortune to him, to them all. He had planned it so nothing could go wrong.

But it had.

The Ships Security Truck had not appeared when it should. The heist was all down to timing. The route the van took had always been the same, for months he had watched and timed and studied it. Why it hadn't turned up yet was beginning to irritate him.

Their client wanted them to deliver the item by 4pm, having already paid half up front, but only because they were the best at what they did.

"Let's go." The soft French voice broke into his thoughts, he turned to look at her, thinking, for a second, that she was going to call it off. He should have known better.

"We're going up ze mountain to see if it's en route. We should be able to pass it, if it's there. If not, we're wasting our time."

He nodded in agreement, and turned the engine on. They sped off along the narrow road, and started their twisted drive up the looming, giant mountain.

Picking up the walky-talky again, she let everyone know what they were doing, ordering them to keep in position.

TBTBTB

Scott finished helping his brothers put away the Mole into its pod before climbing back into his beloved Thunderbird 1. He wiped the sweat off his forehead, leaving another smear of mud across his face.

He was dirty and tired. Physically, and emotionally. This had been another tough rescue. And they had already had a busy week.

He really hated land slides, the mess and terror they caused never failed to amaze him. This time a school had been covered, luckily most of the children had already left to go home. They saved four children and seven of the teachers from within the school building.

It had been close though. Just as Virgil was taking out the last few people, the mud started to slide again, covering their escape.

Scott and Gordon had watched in horror as their brother and the survivors disappeared beneath the mud and rubble.

Scott instantly was on his communicator, calling Virgil to see if he was all right, but there had been no answer.

Gordon watched in a daze, until he saw Scott charge over and begin to dig away the mud with his bare hands. Coming to his senses, Gordon copied and they both dug, trying to get through to the people buried beneath.

"Stop" Scott suddenly said, "Gordon, stop. Listen".

The brothers stood as the sound rumbled gently under them.

Gordon gasped, then a grin broke out on his face, "It's the Mole! They made it back to the Mole!" Scott's smile spread across his face, then realisation fell upon him.

"Move out the way, quick, he's coming through!" He shouted, pushing his younger sibling away from where the ground was now shaking as the Thunderbird digging machine poked its nose out from the ground.

"You know, Scott" Gordon said, turning to look at his older brother, "You look a mess! What possessed you to get you're hands dirty?" Laughing in relief, the two brothers moved to the door of the Mole to help out the last few people that Virgil had saved.

"You okay, Virg?" Scott called in through the doors.

"Yeah, just my watch got knocked off by some of the rubble falling down. It went dark and I couldn't find it, so we made our way back to the Mole."

"Are you hurt?" Scott called back, concerned.

"Nah, just a knock. I'll get it looked at back home. Don't worry." Virgil came to the door and took in the state of his older brother. "You look a mess, what happened to you?" he inquired, raising his eyebrows as Scott looked away, blushing under his muddy face pack.

"I..We started to dig you out…"

Virgil just stared. Then blinked as he took in what his brother admitted. "You tried to dig me out?" He paused, looking down at Scott's muddy uniform, face and hands. "With your hands?" His tone was amused and surprised.

Scott looked sheepishly back at his brother, "Yeah, well, it seemed a good idea at the time"

Laughing, Virgil patted Scott on the back "Well buddy, next time change your clothes first! Tin-tin is going to have a fit when she sees what a mess you've made of her new uniform!"

Smiling along with his not so clean brother, Scott ordered Virgil to start packing away, while he went and found Virgil's watch just inside the new tunnel, knowing they could not leave any trace of Thunderbird technology for anyone to find.

Sitting down in the cockpit, Scott opened a channel as he strapped himself in.

"Thunderbird 1 to base."

"This is base, how's it going, Scott?" John's voice came back across the speaker as his face appeared on the vid-screen.

"All clear, I'm heading home now. Virgil and Gordon are just behind me. ETA about 45 minutes"

"You all right, Scott? You look a little ….dirty" John's voice was calm, not giving anything away. Though his eyes danced merrily as he waited for Scott to reply.

"I know I'm a mess, thanks, but so are the others. You would be too if you'd come as well." Scott answered, his voice going hard, fed-up with everyone commenting on his appearance. He was always so clean and tidy, he hated dirt, and they all knew it.

"Okay Scott," John put his hands up to show he would back off "Tin-tin will have supper ready for when you guys get back. Base out"

Scott gently took his 'bird' into the air, and headed off nearly at full throttle back to base, careful to go high enough into the clouds away from prying eyes.

He was half way home when another call came through.

"Thunderbird 5 to Thunderbird 1, Scott, can you hear me?" Alan's voice sounded urgent.

"Go ahead Alan, you're loud and clear. What's up?"

"We've just had call from a Security Company, one of their vans was attacked, and it contained some components for military stealth aircrafts. They say they can't get up the mountain in time, and they are having trouble communicating with the guards. They seem to think they are on a ledge of a cliff."

"So, what's that got to do with us? We don't get involved with military things. You know that." Scott replied.

His fathers voice broke in, "Yes, but if these components fall into the 'wrong' hands, we'll have big trouble on our hands. Scott, I want you to check out the area. John will give you the co-ordinates. We might as well check on them, seeing your only about 10 minutes from their position."

Scott sighed; he had been looking forward to having a hot shower. "F.A.B. father. Thunderbird 1 to Thunderbird 2"

"Thunderbird 2 here, we heard loud and clear, we'll follow you Scott. ETA 20 minutes, you sure put your foot down today, Scotty boy." Virgil answered.

"Yeah well, no rest for the wicked, see you there. Thunderbird 1 out"

TBTBTB


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The black Mercedes tore along the mountain road. The sleek, powerful car made the bends with ease at the hands of Weasel, the thin man skilfully guiding its course.

"'Zere it is" the French woman's soft accent was excited as she spotted their quarry. "Go past, and get into position, I'll tell ze others."

He put his foot down harder on the accelerator and pushed the speed up to 60mph, cutting just in front of the Security van and disappearing around the next bend.

"Wolf, we 'ave passed ze van, tell Snake to commence as planned, no stunts, in and out."

"Okay Foxy, will do darl', see ya in a bit," came the smooth, deep voice back down the communicator.

She rolled her eyes at his comments, and turned to Weasel "Snake had better not mess up this time, he's a loose cannon."

Weasel agreed with her in his squeaky voice, "It must be time to replace him surely, he had his uses, but we'll have to see who else is available, before he does something that endangers us again. Let's hope he keeps his temper in check today."

The car slowed down and Weasel reversed it into a gap between the road and the mountain. Turning off the engine, they sat in silence, waiting for the 'show' to begin. They had full view of the road, without a chance of being seen themselves.

TBTBTB

The helicopter pilot dropped off Snake at the road side behind the immobile van, then flew off to keep watch for the authorities that would come from check point 11. It was his job to keep them busy, whilst his colleagues raided the van.

Snake had decided to change the plan while they were airborne, and ordered Croc to blow a hole in the road, Snake had a flair for dramatics. Placing the helicopter a safe distance away from the target, Croc put his finger on the trigger and fired a small missile, which hit the road, causing it to vanished in smoke and dust. When it cleared, Croc gave a toothy grin, there was no-way anyone would give them trouble now.

Both he and Snake knew that Vixen would fume at them for a while, but Snake was the one who was supposed to be in charge, and he had been, before he linked up with her. Now she seemed to run things. Croc knew it wouldn't be long before Snake got bored with her. He didn't think she would be easy to get rid of, as the other guys liked her leadership better.

He knew Snake would finally realise it, and when that happened Snake was not going to like it, and that was dangerous.

TBTBTB

Snake walked towards the back of the scratched van. He stood at 6ft4 and was full of well-toned muscles. He was known as Snake because his body was covered in tattoos of them, he even had a python on his body, which coiled around his arm and up over the back of his shoulder, with its head on his cheek. The artist who had done it was so talented, it looked real and as he moved, it appeared that the python moved too.

He had no hair on any part of his body. His eyes were dark and intense, one look from him would freeze even the bravest of men, as if they were hypnotised. He could strike a man down with the knife that he kept constantly at his side, before they even knew what happened, they would be bleeding. Just like a snake, his 'bite' meant you were dead.

He was reckless, and ruthless. No one except Vixen had ever stood up to him. That was part of the initial attraction he had for her, as well as her stunning looks, she was brave, crafty and intelligent.

When he reached the van doors, the side door of the Hummer opened, and out climbed two more men. The first was holding a radio; he was well dressed, tall and fit, he moved with a graceful long stride. Behind him came a huge man, who was built more like a bull than a man.

"Stand back, boys" Snake warned them, as they made their way over to him as he finished fitting the explosives. The tall man stopped and turned to walk around to the front of the van to see the guards, who had yet to make an appearance.

"Wolf, get your ass over here, I'm gonna blow it." Wolf turned and ran towards the cover of the rocks where the other two men was crouching behind.

Snake grinned as he pressed the detonator, and the back of the van exploded. The force of it pushed the van forward, freeing itself from between the Hummer and the cliff face.

"Shit man!" exclaimed Rhino "That was awesome!" slapping Snake on the back, "You got style dude!" They grinned evilly at each other.

"Yes, lets hope you didn't damage the goods" Wolf's smooth voice warned scornfully, "Foxy isn't going to be happy if you did".

Snake laughed, at the same time giving Wolf a glare in contempt "Ah, let the bitch moan. Who says she's in charge anyway?" Wolf slyly gave Rhino a wink behind Snakes back, who smirked back at him knowingly.

Coming out from behind the rock, Snake and Rhino advanced towards the smoking vehicle. The back doors had been completely blown away. Snake put his foot on the floor and tested it before climbing in. He began to rummage in the back, looking hard for his trophy.

Rhino kept a lookout in case the guards should appear, whilst Wolf made contact with Vixen.

"Hey Foxy! You enjoy the show?" he casually asked. At the same time a torrent of obscene language started coming out from the back of the van, which made Rhino and Wolf grin at each other, despite the fact it did not sound good.

"Uh, Foxy darl, I don't think Snakeboy can find it, luv" Wolf reported, knowing she would not be happy.

"What do you mean? It's got to be z'ere" She was angry. She had seen the explosion; the blast should not have been that big. If Snake had damaged their client's property, all hell would break loose.

Rhino called to Snake "Hey man, what you do'in in there? Get it and lets get outta here".

Just then the two men outside noticed a rumbling sound, and the ground started to shake.

"You thinking what I am?" Rhino said gruffly to Wolf.

"Yes, lets get back to the Hummer, quick."

They turned and ran, leaving Snake inside the van, as Rhino turned on the engine, Wolf called out the window "Get out of there, Snake, the mountain's coming down!" As cracks started to appear in the road, Rhino shifted the Hummer into reverse and they shot backwards, just in time as the first rocks fell on the spot they had occupied only seconds before.

"Holy shit!"

"Snake!" Yelled Rhino, "Oh man, he's got to get out of there!"

Snake didn't feel the tremors as he was rummaging around, but he did hear them shouting and thinking that they were arguing he ignored them. By the time Snake felt the movement of the road and heard the engine roar into life as it reversed out of the way, it was too late.

The van began its descent down the mountain, all he could do was hold on to stop himself falling out.

To those watching, it happened in slow motion, the noise rebounding around them as they watched in fascination, disappointment and then the horror of losing their quarry.

As suddenly as it started, it stopped. As tremors subsided the van had disappeared in a cloud of dust.

Vixen's voice blared out the radio at them "Get out z'ere and see how far down it's gone!"

Wolf and Rhino jumped out of the Hummer and cautiously made their way to the edge of the missing road. As the dust cleared, they could see the van had amazingly come to a rest on a ledge, wedged between some rocks. The road it had been on cracked and fell all the way down.

Silently they glanced uneasily at each other.

"Well?" came Vixens impatient voice, "Can we salvage anything?" From the Mercedes' position they could not see clearly yet.

Clearing his voice, Wolf answered her "Well darl, it doesn't look good from here. We could use the cables in the Hummer to winch Snake up. If he's still alive"

The radio crackled as a grim voice spoke out "Of course I'm bloody alive. Get the rope down to me now. I've got the blasted component, the fall opened a hidden compartment."

Smiling in relief, Rhino ran to the Hummer and made his way back with it to rescue his boss.

"Careful boys, we don't know if that was all the mountain has to throw at us, so hurry up"

TBTBTB

Jacob slowly opened his eyes as the van came to a stop. Thinking he was dead, he wondered what it would be like, then it dawned on him that he was still alive, inside the van. He picked up the communicator and started to radio for help.

"Galleon 6 calling Lighthouse. Do you read? Over." His voice shook, but ever the professional, he knew his job down to the last letter. He worriedly looked at Sarah, who mercifully was still unconscious.

"Galleon 6 to …. anyone. We are stuck on a ledge half way down the mountain. Do you read me?" Wiping a hand over his sweaty brow he tried again. Desperately calling out to someone whom he hoped would hear him

"Calling International Rescue, this is an emergency. Do you copy? Over"

Still nothing. No answer came.

He checked the signal, it should still work. Knowing there was nothing else he could do, he kept on transmitting his plea for help, hope slipping away with each passing second. With tears in his eyes, he thought of his wife, and the grandchildren that he would be leaving behind.

TBTBTB

Thunderbird One flew through the sky in a silver streak. Scott opened a channel.

"Thunderbird One to Thunderbird Five, have you been able to contact the driver yet?"

"Not yet Scott" Alan answered. "I can hear him, but he's not responding to us. The circuit must be fractured. What's your ETA?"

Scott looked down at the dials "Approaching danger zone now. I'll let you know when I've landed. Thunderbird One out."

TBTBTB

Croc had been listening to the radio waves, trying to find out how soon the authorities would arrive, when he picked up International Rescues transmission.

Swearing, he let Vixen know "We got company Vixen. In the form of International Rescue. You want me to run them off?"

There was a second of silence as she pondered her decision. Looking at Weasel, they smirked in quiet agreement. "No. Let them come. Get out of 'ere, I'll let you know when we need you back."

Weasel looked excited, "We can turn this to our advantage, you know."

Smiling back at him Vixen answered, "I know. Can you imagine what our client would pay for information about their technology?"

"Wolf, a change of plan. Leave Snake down there, we 'ave company." Wolf looked confused, but he put his hand on Rhino's shoulder as he made to lower the rope down the cliff. Rhino gave a low growl at her decision. "We 'ave bigger fish to catch. International Rescue will be here soon. I want you to assist them, find out as much as you can. Let Snake know." And she cut off.

Rhino had an ugly expression on his face; "She can't make us leave 'im down there!"

Wolf sighed, "She's not. But she's also right. So pack this up." He smoothed out his clothes and turned to look over at Rhino "Try to look innocent, these guys aren't stupid. Let me do the talking." Rhino just grunted and scowled in reply as he shifted the Hummer into gear and drove her a short distance away.

They covered their tracks and Wolf radioed Snake to let him know.

He was not happy about it, but had no choice in the matter, as the Thunderbird appeared over the top of the mountain, hovering to observe the situation for a couple of minutes before slowly moving towards the road and landing a good, safe distance away from the missing road, so not to cause anymore rock falls.

TBTBTB

"Thunderbird One to base" Scott was amazed at the position the security van was in, perched between the rocks. He hoped Virgil was not too far behind.

"This is base, go ahead Scott" His fathers voice floated back to him.

"I'm at danger zone. It doesn't look good, Father; I'm going to land and see if I can contact the guards with the Hover cam. Tell Virgil he needs to step on it. If there are any more tremors, I don't think the rocks will hold."

"Okay Scott, set up, and keep in contact. Base out"

"FAB."

Shifting the controls, Scott put his bird gently to the ground.

Opening the hatch doors, he heard someone shouting.

"Help, help, there are people down there." A mans voice called out to him. Scott ran along the road till he came to two men waiting between the missing road, and a slightly smashed Hummer.

"Hi fellers, are you both alright?" Scott asked them as he approached.

"Yes, we luckily were a way behind that van and managed to stop before we went down there too." Wolf answered him, pointing to the gap in the road.

"Did you see it happen then?" Scott asked, thinking it a little strange that the van was moving and just happened to be on that piece of road when it gave way. "I was told they were under attack." He looked at the smartly dressed man carefully, looking for signs of a lie.

"Is that what they were doing? There was a helicopter hanging around earlier, haven't seen it since the landslide. We came around the corner after it happened, got the aftershock. Thank God." He never changed his expression, the tale was smoothly told, and Scott despite his misgivings, let it go. There were people to rescue.

"Thunderbird One to Thunderbird Two. I've got a couple of men here, who were lucky not to need rescuing too. What's your ETA?" He really needed them here, but letting Virgil know that he was not alone.

"Thunderbird 2 to Thunderbird 1. ETA 4.30 minutes to danger zone. How's it looking down there?" Virgil understood loud and clear.

Peering over the edge, Scott released the camera. "Not great. You'll need to use the clamps to pick up the van. I can guide you from my position. Trying to contact the guards now. Thunderbird 1 out."

"FAB" Virgil replied, and ordered Gordon to prepare the clamps and winches.

Scott returned from Thunderbird 1 with the monitors and watched as the picture followed the decent of the van to its temporary resting place on the cliff face. He swung it to the front, where the guards were in the front of the van. He could see Jacob's terrified face staring out at him, and noted he did not seem to see the camera at all. Swinging the camera across the window, he saw Sarah, blood down one side of her young and frightfully pale face, and obviously either dead or unconscious.

Scott glanced at the two strange men who were quietly observing him as he worked. He felt unsure of them, but instantly forgot when he heard the boosters of Thunderbird 2, as she lowered gracefully down from the sky into place just above the spot where the van was perched.

"Okay Thunderbird Two. Lower the grabs now, nice and slowly." Scott ordered his brothers straight away.

"FAB. Lowering clamps now." Virgil's voice came out, Scott allowed himself a brief smile before going into full rescue mode.

"Right about 5 degrees, steady now." The cable came closer, swinging slightly in the wind. "Steady now. Open grabs. That's it." Scott took a deep breath, and looked up the mountain for a brief second, praying the landslide would not reoccur.

"Right, close grabs…..now!"

The huge metal grabs closed shut on the van, and Virgil raised Thunderbird Two upwards, so he could lower the van safely onto the road near Thunderbird One.

"All clear. Well done Thunderbird Two. Meet you in a minute."

"FAB, releasing grabs now, though I doubt there is anywhere for us to land. Will have to put her on auto. Thunderbird 2 out."

Scott packed up the mobile control unit and hurried back to his bird, being followed by the two silent men. He never noticed that Wolf was making short radio updates on his radio. He had forgotten they were there.

As he approached the security van, it swung around just before landing on the ground, giving Scott a side view, and now he could see the damage that had been done to the back.

Cautiously he made his way around the back, when a massive form leaped out at him with a hiss, and he found himself flat on the ground, the breath knocked out of him at the unexpected attack.

He looked up into the face of his attacker, and started in shock at the snake tattooed on his face, the man grinned at him. "Scared of snakes are you, hero?" his face was really close to Scott's, "You'd be stupid not to be, boy."

Scott's training suddenly kicked in and he made a jerking movement, twisting to the side, he bought his knee up and threw Snake off him. Jumping to his feet he pulled out his laser. "Don't move, I'm with International Rescue and you're under arrest"

Snake got up off the floor and looked to see where Wolf and Rhino were. Satisfied, allowing himself to pretend to be caught, he raised his arms above his head.

"Alright boy, you win. Where'd you want me?" Snake took a step towards him, as Scott radioed Virgil.

"Thunderbird 2, I have apprehended a suspect." Scott raised the laser, and Snake stopped, grimacing and narrowing his dark eyes at Scott.

"We're on our way now." Virgil answered straight away.

"FAB, you need to check on the guards, I'll sort out snake man here."

"Snake man?" Virgil's voice was amused.

"Yeah, I'll explain later. Thunderbird 1 out."

Scott turned his head to glance at Wolf and Rhino, who had moved to stand closer to the van. "You two involved in this as well?" Scott demanded of them, his voice hard, the laser still pointing at Snake.

Rhino flicked a quick look at Snake and then at Wolf, who made no move at all. "No. I told you, we were following, just innocent bystanders. You want us to cover him while you check on the guys in the front?" Wolf calmly answered him.

Just then, Virgil and Gordon appeared round the corner, seeing that Scott had it all under control, set about rescuing the casualties. With the attention diverted from him momentarily, Snake struck.

Leaping towards Scott, he slashed out at him with his knife, slicing his arm. Scott's instincts saved him from having his throat slit as he dodged to the side. As the momentum of Snake's attack threw him forward without the resistance he expected, Scott took advantage of the larger mans off-balance and followed it up with a well-placed elbow on the lower part of Snake's back. He knocked Snake headfirst into the side of the van with a loud crash, which brought Gordon out to see what had happened.

"What's…?" He started to say, when he was punched in the stomach by Rhino, who despite Vixen's orders, wanted a piece of the boys in blue too.

He doubled over, coughing and his eyes watering. Scott fired a shot at Rhino stunning him. The huge man fell backwards with a loud thump.

"You okay?" Scott called to Gordon, worried, even though blood was dripping down his arm and onto the floor from the knife slash.

Gordon wheezed, "Yeah, I'll be fine." But he stayed kneeling on the floor anyway.

Scott turned to Wolf. "So what's it going to be? You too?"

Wolf put his hands up in defeat, "Not me, honestly, I don't know this guy, I picked him up at the bottom of the mountain. I swear. I thought he was a hitch hiker."

He took a few steps away from everyone warily. Scott looked unsure whether to believe him or not. "Stay over there, out our way. Or you'll end up like him." Scott motioned to the still form of Rhino on the ground.

Then he turned his attention back to Snake who had stood up and was glaring at Scott with his piercing dark eyes. Hate and death were promised within them. Scott had seen many villains, but the depth of the look this man gave him froze him and shook him to the core.

A brief moment of dizziness overtook Scott for a second, fatigue and now loss of blood were combining to make him a little light headed.

Wolf noted that the dark haired man did not look too good, and also saw the look Snake was giving him. This guy did not know what he was in for. Wolf felt sorry for him.

Gordon got up and looked at Scott, noticing his condition. "Scott, you're bleeding!" He blurted out in concern moving towards his older sibling, then pausing at the mistake he realised he had made at the use of his brother's name, when Scott turned to scowl at him.

Not letting the moment slip away, Snake attacked Scott for the third time. Scott, although not 100 percent, still reacted with skill, a quick step back, and bringing the laser down hard on Snake's temple at the same time, knocked the man out cold instantly.

Wolf gasped in surprise. Never had Snake been beaten before. No one had survived a fight with Snake, and this guy had come out alive not once, but three times. Not unscathed, but alive.

Vixen was going to be very impressed. Wolf knew she was unhappy with Snake, and he hoped he would replace him at her side. They could certainly use a man such as this in their team. The possibilities would be endless.

"Wow, that was amazing!" he said, rushing forward towards the brothers. Gordon turned and gave him a 'who the hell are you' look, before turning back to Scott, "If you're okay, I'll go help out with the guards. They need to be taken to the hospital."

Scott nodded his head in acknowledgement. Wolf knelt down next to Snake, and put his hand on his neck to feel for a pulse. Leaning over the body, he searched Snake's pockets for the component they had come for.

Finding it he slipped it into his own pocket.

"He's alive, I guess he'll be out of it for a while. Hey, are you all right? You don't look so good." Wolf observed to Scott. "Maybe you should sit down?"

Scott blinked, he had spaced out for a moment. Shaking his head he told Wolf to go. There was nothing he could do here.

Wolf gave his thanks and got into the Hummer, and drove it carefully past the huge Thunderbird that sat on the road. Stunned by the machine, he hoped they would be able to see it again soon.

"Virgil, how are they?" Scott pushed his tiredness away. "Can you take snake man and this bull with you too?"

Virgil's voice floated back out at him "Sure Scott. The guards will both be fine, we'll finish up here if you want. You sound tired bro. Gordon said you're bleeding, I'll come and check you in a minute, bro."

Scott frowned, not liking to be weak in front of anyone, retorted, "I'm fine. Lets just load up and go. Tell Gordon not to tell tales. I'm gonna finish putting mobile control away."

Scott walked off, and Virgil sighed knowing what mood his brother was in. Gordon watched and shook his head in dismay, but knew better than to try and press the matter.

When everything was done, Scott radioed in with base, letting them know that they were on their way home.

TBTBTB

"Well, what do you think?"

Vixen was amazed. "I think we 'ave found our man, wouldn't you agree?"

Smirking, Weasel agreed. "Looks like he's already working for us, he got rid of Snake, and survived. Maybe we can try out that new product Caspian was telling us about."

A smile curved across her face. "I think our client will be only too pleased with 'ze chain of events. This 'venture has been much more profitable than we first expected! Lets ditch this car. I'm calling Croc to pick us up."

TBTBTB

To be continued...


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Thunderbird One's nose tipped skywards as Scott prepared to fire its boosters to lower it safely away under the swimming pool on Tracy Island.

He was covered in mud and blood, his uniform torn, completely ruined from the day's rescues. His arm was throbbing painfully, the drying blood catching on his sleeve every time he moved his arm. It didn't help that he had to use both his arms to control his 'bird'. He felt completely drained, and apart from a shower, all he wanted was to go to sleep and forget the day he'd had so far.

"Thunderbird One to base" he called in as he fired the boosters.

"Go ahead, Scott" answered John, who was having a month off from manning Thunderbird Five. He enjoyed covering for his father between going on rescues and relaxing by the pool when he was grounded.

"I'm going to give Dad a brief report when I come up. Can you tell him to meet me in the lounge in five?" Scott's voice was strained as he held Thunderbird One steady as she landed gently on the hangar floor. "I will give a full report when Virg gets back."

"FAB Scott, I'll tell him now." John couldn't see Scott, as he hadn't turned on the vid-screen, but he could hear the tension in his older brother's voice. "Scott, are you okay?" he asked in concern.

There was a pause before Scott answered, then a sigh came through the speaker "I'm fine John, it's been tiring." Another pause "Is Tin-tin around?"

John narrowed his eyes in suspicion, he knew his brother too well. "Yeah Scott, she's in the kitchen with Grandma. Shall I call her up as well?"

"No, it's okay. I'll catch her later. See you in four." Scott broke off the transmission.

Unstrapping himself, he started to go through the landing procedure of checking out all the systems, thinking once he was finished giving his report he was going to crash out.

When Scott reached the lounge he was a little surprised to find not only his father and John, but also Tin-tin and Brains waiting for him.

As he came through the hatch there was a collected gasp at the state of his appearance.

"Scott, son come and sit down before you fall down," Jeff stated firmly to his eldest son. Scott let a small smile escape at his father's ability to read him like a book, but stayed standing near his portrait.

"Scott, you're bleeding!" Tin-tin burst out suddenly "Oh Mr Tracy, I must take a look and clean it up!"

Jeff shook his head no, "Not yet Tin-tin, let Scott give his report first. Go ahead, son." His deep voice answered.

Tin-tin's, John's and Brain's eyes all widened in shock. Jeff always ordered the boys to look after themselves first, "But Mr Tracy…." complained Tin-tin, before Scott cut across her.

"It's okay, Tin-tin." Scott smiled at her, before turning to his father who was sitting behind his desk. "Well sir, the school rescue went well, until Virgil and some victims were covered by another mud slide, then we lost contact. But they escaped in the Mole." Turning to Brains he handed him Virgil's broken watch. "This needs fixing".

"And the second rescue?" John asked, "What happened there?" He knew something had shaken up his brother, and he wanted to know what had happened. Gordon had radioed in earlier and warned them that someone had attacked them, but gave no details, not wanting the wrath of Scott when he found out Gordon had ratted on him.

"Well, the rescue itself went well, and we caught the guy behind it all. He was in the back of the van and jumped me when I went to investigate."

He was watching his father's face as he spoke, noting the stern expression appearing on it, thinking it was not going to be good for him when his father found out what he had done.

"Anyway, I overpowered the guy, and Virgil and Gordon came and sorted out the guards, well this man went for me again, actually he caught my arm with his knife on his second attempt." Motioning his bad arm with his good hand, a grim look on his face. "That was when Gordon came out to see what all the noise was, and a huge man who was just watching punched him in the stomach." He paused, gathering his thoughts, "I let my guard slip, I felt something was strange about him. I should have realised he was involved in some way as well. I suggest you take a look at Gordon when he gets back in Tin-tin." Turning her way for a brief moment, taking in her stunned look. "He was down and out of breath for a short while".

Turning to face his father, he held his head high and said "That was when I shot him." He rephrased it "I stunned the brute who attacked Gordon. I'd already nearly lost my head from a knife; I had no idea what weapons the other man had. I had no choice, we had casualties and these men were huge!" He rushed the last part, which John noted was out of character for his calm and controlled older brother.

Scott went quiet, looking at the floor, praying his father would forgive him for his mistake, he could have gotten Gordon killed. He should have paid more attention to what was happening.

John wanted to say something, but instead stood looking between his father and his older brother.

The room was silent for what seemed an eternity while Jeff studied the top of his eldest son's head, and his slumped stance, then "Thunderbird Two to base, request permission to approach for landing." Virgil's voice broke the uncomfortable atmosphere.

"Base to Thunderbird Two, you're all clear to land. Get up here as soon as you've landed." Jeff ordered them.

"FAB, Father." Virgil replied, sounding a little confused.

Scott began to feel dizzy again, the room started to tilt side-ways and before he knew what was happening, his knees buckled and he found himself being supported between John and Tin-tin, who unfortunately had one of her hands pressing on his knife wound.

"Whoa, who made the floor tilt?" he said weakly, his eyes focusing on the pain Tin-tin was causing on his arm "Tin-tin, do you mind letting my arm go?" She realised what she was doing and quickly removed her hand apologising. He regained his balance and footing. John held him firmly, refusing to let him go, reassuring him with his close presence.

"Scott" his father caught and held his son's weary, but determined eyes.

"Yes sir?" Scott answered, his voice stronger, standing to attention Scott was ready to take anything his father threw at him.

Jeff was proud of his eldest son, he had stood up once again to protect his brothers, even when he knew it would cause himself trouble.

"Scott, go and get cleaned up. Tin-tin will patch up that arm of yours. You did well today son." He paused as shock and relief registered in the blue eyes staring at him "Off you go. I'll get a full report off Virgil and Gordon."

John smiled in relief, and pulled Scott towards the door as Scott started to protest, Tin-tin rushed off ahead to the medical room.

"M..Mr Tracy" Brains stuttered. "What was that all a..about?"

Jeff sighed, and explained "Scott hates the fact that we have to carry weapons. Was against it from the start. I had to order him to wear the stun-laser. He said if he ever had to use it he would pay the consequences and even threatened to leave International Rescue when I considered that they should carry 'real' guns. He was younger then, and full of himself." Jeff sighed, remembering the past "He feels he is his brothers protector, I guess the week must have finally caught up with him. He's not as sure of himself when he's tired. Not to mention he's in shock, hurt, and he was scared he'd put his brothers in danger. He's probably blaming himself, after all, we all rely on him, don't we?"

Brains nodded in agreement. Sometimes Scott took too much responsibility on himself and it would crush him. Then he would turn against himself and make himself ill by putting too much pressure on his young shoulders. It had been that way since his mother had died.

"Perhaps some time off would help?" Brains suggested.

Jeff just smiled and shook his head, no. He knew his son better than the boy knew himself. Sometimes Scott was just too much like him.

The sound of Thunderbird Two landing gently shook the room. "Ah, lets see what the other boys reaction to this is. Scott can be a little biased at times," Jeff stated.

TBTBTB

John felt the familiar shudders as Thunderbird Two landed in her hangar.

He looked to Tin-tin and she smiled back at him saying, "It's okay John, you go. I can handle him from here. I'll call you when he wakes if you like."

"Thanks Tin-tin. You're a star." He glanced at the still, pale form of his older brother on the med-bed, and then left to see what was being said up in the lounge.

As he drew nearer to the room, he could hear raised voices. Thinking this was not good, he made his entrance.

"Ah, John, how is he?" Jeff enquired looking away from a very angry looking Gordon. All heads turned to face him.

"He collapsed after showering, Tin-tin is cleaning the wound now. It's quite deep, but should heal well. He really doesn't look well, Father." John commented.

Virgil frowned, swinging around to look for his father's response, but Gordon responded first, swearing. "I knew he was hurt. Why the hell didn't he let us look at him at the scene?" He paced across the room to look out of the window.

Jeff stood up "Well son, that's just Scott. He…feels he doesn't need to be 'looked after'. To show anything he considers a 'weakness' in anyone's presence, to him, he is failing his duty as your older brother."

Gordon swung back around, "Well he's damn stupid! What if he passed out whilst flying home, huh? How am I supposed to feel, by not making him get checked out?"

"Gord, it's not your fault." Virgil tried to placate his angry sibling, "Scott can't help it. Dad, you know as well as I do, Scott would never endanger any one on purpose."

John stepped forward "Yeah, it's been a hell of a week for all of us. Why don't you two get cleaned up? Gordon, Tin-tin wants to check you out." Gordon's face turned to scowl at John, "Just to check you're ok, bro. Don't be a hypocrite, you've just been moaning about Scott not doing the same thing."

He turned to his other brother, "You too, Virgil, get your wrist looked at." Virgil looked in surprise at John, who explained "Scott told me on the way down to med-bay. He was worried about you as well, bro."

Sighing, Gordon let the anger go. "He should stop being a mother hen, but you're right, as usual, Johnny." Virgil patted him on his back again.

Jeff watched his son's, he enjoyed the way they could each work out what to say to each other, whether it was to upset, annoy or in this case console each other.

"Off you go boys. Let's put this one under the carpet for now. We'll discuss it later."

"Right Dad." Virgil answered, "Come on Gords, I'm going to shower for two hours to get this muck off!"

The brothers left the room, leaving Jeff, John and Brains alone.

"Well?" Jeff asked John, "What do you really think?" his eyes intense on the light blond haired son.

"Truth?" He started, pausing as his father nodded "I think Scott just overdid it this week, Gordon needs to release some of that aggression, otherwise we're going to pay for it in pranks. Virgil, as usual is as steady as a rock."

Jeff smiled, agreeing with his verdict. "Let's hope we get a few days of quiet to recover, then I guess it will be business as usual. Thanks, John."

"Anytime Dad, anytime." He turned to go, "It's nice talking to you face to face, rather than through a vid-screen, Father." The words were spoken quietly, but with feeling.

Jeff whispered back, "I know son. I think so too."

TBTBTB

Two Weeks Later BEEP bip BEEP bip 

"Calling International Rescue, we need your help." The call came in from Mexico.

Alan instantly answered the call. "This is International Rescue. What's the emergency?"

"Oh thank God," the grateful voice replied "My friends have been missing for over 6 hours now. They went caving into Sotano Akemati, one of the deepest caves in the world." The person paused "We lost contact, I think that they are stuck or are running out of air down there. Please, you're our only hope. No-one else has the equipment."

"Okay, calm down. I'll see what we can do for you." Alan reassured the worried voice, "How many people are down there?"

"Three, my sister and her boyfriend and a friend. They have a walkie-talkie, we were in contact, then there was screaming and then silence. Please, you must hurry!"

"Okay. Stand-by." Alan flicked a switch and pressed the emergency button to alert the Thunderbird headquarters.

"Go ahead Alan, what's up?" Jeff turned to face his youngest son's portrait, as the brothers came running into the room.

"We have a situation in Mexico father. Three people are either lost or stuck down a cave."

"Which cave?" John asked.

"Sotano Akemati," he paused, as he looked it up on the computer "It's in Puebla, it's a deep one alright, goes down 4918 meters. Shall I say we're on our way?"

"FAB Alan. Right boys…..Thunderbirds are go!"

Alan's portrait stilled as he switched frequencies again.

Jeff turn to the alert young men standing in front of him, "Scott, I want you to take Thunderbird One and assess what happened. Take John with you," he told his oldest son, whilst giving John a sly wink, who replied with a slight nod.

"FAB" they said in unison. Before disappearing into the wall.

"Virgil, you and Gordon follow as soon as you can inTB2, take the Mole and climbing equipment with you. Off you go, boys, and good luck."

"Yes sir" answered Virgil, "Come on Gords" and they left the room to prepare for take off.

Jeff twisted his chair around to face the pictures of all his sons on the wall, his eyes pausing on each one before Scott's voice broke his thoughts.

"Thunderbird One ready for launch, sir"

"All clear, Scott. Keep in contact, base out." Jeff wondered what waited for them in Mexico. The room shuddered as Thunderbird One blasted into the sky, and flew off into the distance.

"Thunderbird Two, ready for takeoff." Gordon informed his father.

"Off you go boys. Don't keep Scott and John waiting."

A laugh came back at him "FAB, Father." Gordon was in good spirits, and Jeff smiled as he sent his son's once more into unknown danger.

TBTBTB

John observed his brother's skills as a pilot. Scott's flying was second nature to him. He had recovered from his wound quickly, but both John and their father wanted to make sure he was not overdoing things, he was not the world's best patient.

The base had luckily been quiet, except for a couple of simple rescues, which Jeff had banned Scott attending, sending in only Thunderbird Two. Scott had stormed off, and John had then talked his father into letting him accompany Scott on Thunderbird One on the next rescue.

"Thunderbird One to base, approaching Danger zone", Scott announced.

"Base to Thunderbird One, you know what to do Scott. Report as soon as you can." Jeff replied, glad John was there as well.

"FAB, Father," Scott answered, his voice in full control. In rescue mode, thought Jeff, smiling to himself.

TBTBTB

Three people sat around Wolf in the entrance to the cave as he made the call to International Rescue, excitement mirrored in each of their eyes.

"Well, they're on their way." Wolf enlightened them, flashing Vixen a boyish grin.

"Good. Now let's get into position." Vixen and Weasel had painstakingly planned and investigated how to get what they wanted. They had the perfect plan.

"No mistakes this time." Weasel added. Croc scowled at him, before Vixen glared back at him and he hurried out the cave followed by Wolf.

"Okay, Weasel, you take over from 'ere, just in case Wolf is recognised" she turned and followed the others out into the heat.

Hidden from view, the four of them awaited the Thunderbirds.

A thundering sound grew closer, and they held their breath as the sleek plane landed gracefully on the ground.

"This is it." Whispered Vixen, as they watched the familiar blue uniform as the pilot emerged out the bottom of Thunderbird One.

Weasel ran out the cave's entrance to meet him. "Inside here, you must help them, please!" he squeaked in his high-pitched voice, grabbing hold of the front of John's sash.

John raised his eyebrows in surprise at the contact. He was not as used to the reactions the public gave his brothers when they arrived at a scene.

"It's alright sir, we are going to do everything we can to save those people. Show me where they went down. Do you have any maps of the cave?" Weasel turned and shepherded John towards the cave, his mind on this newcomer. They had not seen him on any of the recordings they had found on the International Rescue tapes.

"Carry on as planned," Vixen hissed down his earpiece. "Ze one we want is coming out now, carrying ze equipment. Keep him busy as long as you can."

Weasel stuck his hand in the air behind John's back, so she knew he had heard her.

"Right, let's go get our boy." Wolf looked to Vixen, who smiled back at him. His heart fluttered in excitement, and from the warmth he felt for her, free from Snake at last to show his affection.

Scott readied Mobile Control, without realising the danger he and his brother were in.

Picking up the communicator, he radioed in to Tracy Island.

"Mobile Control to base"

Two figures crept up from behind Thunderbird One.

"This is base, go ahead Mobile Control." Jeff's voice answered.

Croc pulled out a weapon and took aim, as they moved steadily closer.

"We are all set-up. John is checking out the cave with the guy who called us for help. What's TB2's ETA?"

Wolf stopped about fifteen feet away, and raised his weapon too. Scott was so preoccupied with his transmission that he never noticed them sneaking up behind him.

"They're about 15mins behind you, Scott. Call me back when you get more information on the caves."

Scott was about to answer, when he felt like someone was watching him, turning his head around he was shocked to see the two men standing there. One he recognised, the other he didn't.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" He started to say in surprise, before his eyes focused on the fact they were both holding guns.

Jeff heard his son's change of voice tone, "Mobile Control report" he ordered loudly.

Scott automatically responded, "Two men have guns pointed at me. One is the guy from …" there was a soft pssst sound, and Jeff heard a gasp escape his eldest son's lips as he whispered "security van…" and then a thud as Scott's body fell to the ground.

TBTBTB

Can anyone tell me what FAB actually stands for??

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far, it really makes my day!!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Wolf fired his weapon when he realised he had been recognised. The dart hit Scott on the side of his neck. Instantly the drug entered his blood stream and Scott gasped when he felt the sting as he was hit. He felt himself falling as his body went numb, but not before he managed to tell his father who was there, and then he succumbed to the blackness that threatened to overtake him.

Wolf quickly knelt down next to him, removing his watch and putting it into a metal box, shutting the lid, locking it away inside.

"Croc, shut down that darn panel!" he ordered the beefy man who stood watching him.

Croc moved forwards, looking blankly at all the dials on the Mobile Control unit. Growling in frustration, he raised his fist to bring it down to smash the equipment when "No!" Vixen's soft French voice stopped him, "I'll do it." And she flicked a switch, cutting off Jeff's urgent voice, demanding to know what was going on.

"Right boys, I believe we 'ave about 12 minutes before 'ze Green Machine arrives. Croc, get 'ze helicopter." Croc nodded, lumbering off.

"We're going to give them a rescue, seeing how they came out here to do one!" Vixen told Wolf, who grinned back at her, and nodded, pulling a small detonator out of this pocket and handing it to her.

She spoke to Weasel through their radio "Weasel, we 'ave what we came for. Stun him and get out of z'ere, we're going to blow it!"

The sound of the helicopter echoed around them as Croc flew above them, bringing it down to land next to Thunderbird One. Vixen climbed in just as Weasel came running out the cave, "Get in, quick!" yelled Wolf, and with the help of Croc, loaded up their newest prize.

Vixen's manicured red fingernails gleamed in the sun shinning through the window. Moving her thumb onto the button, she pressed the detonator.

Rocks exploded into the air, falling to cover the entrance to the cave, leaving it completely blocked.

Laughing, Croc flew them away from the scene before Thunderbird Two arrived, with only minutes to spare.

TBTBTB

Jeff's heart hammered loudly in his chest when he heard his eldest son's voice change from the controlled rescue operator to a shocked man. Knowing something was wrong, Jeff instantly ordered his son to report, knowing his military training would kick in.

It was then Jeff heard a shot with a silencer being fired. Hearing Scott gasp and his son's voice fade as Scott tried to tell his father who was with him, made Jeff's heart stop.

Jeff felt like panicking, but it was not in his own training to act that way, instead he went into full commander mode.

"Report. Mobile Control unit, report!" His voice louder and sterner with each passing moment. He could hear people moving around, but not a sound from his son.

"Base to Mobile Control, do you copy? What's going on?" He tried again.

"Who is there? Answer damn it!" he almost shouted down the radio in his deep voice. Flicking the monitor on, he caught a glimpse of a huge man with his fist raised above his head about to smash the control unit. Then a stunningly beautiful lady appeared on the camera and shut down the unit with expert ease. She did not notice the anxious man watching her through the vid-screen.

He tried to contact John, but got no answer from him either. Fearing the worst, Jeff stared for a second at the screen in silence before contacting Virgil.

"Base to Thunderbird Two, come in Virgil"

"Thunderbird Two to base, how's Scott and John getting on?" Virgil looked at his father from his picture on the wall.

"Son, we have a problem, Scott has been attacked…"

"Again?" Gordon's voice erupted from behind Virgil. "What does he do to upset people these days?"

Virgil swatted his hand at his younger brother to hush him before turning back to his father with a serious expression on his face. "Where's John? Are they alright?" He enquired.

Jeff looked worriedly at him, "I don't know. I've lost all communication with both of them. How long till you get there?"

"About 2 minutes, Father. Don't worry, Dad, they're tough and we'll be there to sort it all out." Virgil reassured him.

"I hope so son, you boys be careful yourselves. We have no idea who the hostiles are or how many there are. Keep an open channel. Base out."

"FAB. We can see Thunderbird One. It looks all quiet down there, Father." Virgil reported as he hovered above the scene to observe the situation. "No sign of Scott, John, or anyone else. I'm going to swing around the area to check for any threats"

Virgil flew up and swung his bird in a circle of the area, not coming up with anything untoward. He landed swiftly next to his brother's plane.

"Oh crap!" Gordon's voice broke out, startling both Virgil and Jeff, as he spotted the damaged cave. "No-one said anything about the cave entrance being blocked by rocks did they?"

"No!" Jeff instantly answered. Then spoke to Alan to confirm the 'rescue' details. "Looks like it was a set-up boys. Be careful."

"Yes sir," replied Virgil. "We'll take a look around first, get Alan to keep trying John's and Scott's communicators."

"FAB son. Good luck." Jeff turned to Brains who'd just walked into the room. Jeff had called him up when he couldn't reach either of the missing boys on their wrist communicator's.

"W..W...What's the problem Mr Tracy?"

"I don't know Brains, I just don't know" sighing he explained to Brains what he knew so far.

"Why don't you use the new trackers I placed in the boys watches so you can locate them?"

Jeff almost spluttered "New trackers? What..! Since when?"

Brains smirked "S..s...since I fixed Virgil's wrist communicator, I p…p…I've been working on adding it for a while, so I updated them all last week."

Jeff's face broke out into a beaming smile, he slapped Brains on the back in appreciation before he contacted Alan to do just that.

TBTBTB

John followed the short man into the mouth of the cave, leaving Scott to set up the Mobile Control unit on his own.

"How far down do you think they were when you lost contact with them?" John asked the man, he pressed a button on his watch, which lit up the cave like a torch. "That's better." He said, he never liked the dark much, unless it was full of stars.

"They had been going down for about four hours, before we had problems with the signal." The man told him, "My names Weas… .…Wesley by the way," he told John, subtly changing the subject "Thank you for coming so quickly. They can't have much air left in their tanks, if they are stuck in a pocket."

John glanced down at his companion as they walked, "A 'pocket'?" he enquired, not sure what the man was saying.

"It's a term we use, just a wider bit of cave, an air pocket. It can be very wet down there you know. Lots of water, like lakes sometimes, so they have to take down diving gear."

John looked back the way they had come, he could no longer see daylight. "How much farther is your equipment?" he asked, not liking the experience at all, and wondered why anyone would want to go into the depths of the earth anyway.

"Just around the next bend," the man reassured him, "You go first, duck your head as you go through though, it narrows down a bit there."

John took a deep breath and lowered his head as instructed, carefully making his way forward, he arrived in a dome shaped cavern. He looked around him in wonder and awe, the cave was magnificent, but the stale air and the dampness pressing in on him was not a feeling he enjoyed. He definitely preferred outer space to this.

Turning to see where Wesley had gone, he was about to ask what the man and his friends saw in caving, but his voice was silenced before he uttered a single word.

Weasel put the stun gun back into the folds of his jacket and pulled out his own torch, just as John's watch began to buzz against John's wrist, the torchlight flashing in rhythm with the buzzing device to get his attention, then went out. It was no good. John was lying unconscious on the cold, wet, stone floor, his uniform soaking up the dampness and his body chilling as the silence of the cave loomed around him.

Weasel took one last look at the young blond haired man, before turning and scurrying back outside to the fresh air and to freedom in the safety of the helicopter.

His job here was done.

TBTBTB

"Thunderbird Two to Scott, come in Scott" Virgil tried out just for the hell of it, after getting no answer from John either. Shaking his head, he turned and followed Gordon out of Thunderbird Two's protection.

Gordon made his way towards the cave, studying the result of the explosion. Turning, he called back to Virgil, "Do you think they're both in there?" motioning the blocked entrance with his head.

Virgil stopped in mid-stride, "Yeah, I do. Let's hope they managed to get far enough away when it fell. I'll go get the Mole, keep an eye on things out here, see if you can get a fix on them through Mobile Control, it looks like Scott managed to set it up before they were attacked." He swung around and ran back to Thunderbird Two.

"FAB Virgil." Gordon answered and made his way over to the unit where their father had last seen and heard from Scott.

The Mobile Control unit had been set up underneath the belly of Thunderbird One, sheltering it from the heat radiating from the sun's vicious glare. Gordon mentally praised his oldest brother's thoughtfulness. He cast his eyes carefully over the expensive machine to look for any damage, when his vision was drawn towards the ground. He spotted a small dart just poking out from underneath the unit, it must have been knocked under and forgotten about when the attack happened.

Gingerly, Gordon picked it up between his thumb and forefinger to study it. He noticed it had contained a liquid. Not knowing what it contained, he pulled out a sterile bag and put it inside for Brains to check out later.

He was relieved to find no signs of a struggle and no blood, which made him feel happier about the situation. Perhaps it had been there before Scott arrived. Maybe his brothers were safe inside the cave. He hoped so, anyway.

Turning his attention to his task, Gordon switched the unit back on, immediately lights started flashing, and then Jeff's face appeared on the vid-screen.

"Well son, what have you found out?"

"No-one's here, Father, and we still can't get hold of them on our communicators. Virgil's coming over now with the Mole, we're going to go under the rocks and create a new entrance. Any luck with those trackers yet?" he enquired.

"Alan is sure that once you make an opening in the cave, he should be able to get a better signal, but there is definitely a faint pulse coming from within the cave, you'll have to go in on foot once you get inside, he say's there's not much room to manoeuvre in there."

Gordon smiled in relief. "Great!" then he remembered his find "Oh, and I found this on the floor by Mobile Control, I don't know if it means anything, Ffather." He held up the bag with the empty dart inside.

Jeff's eyes narrowed in thought, "Bring it home with you, Gordon, I'll get Brains to have a look at it later. First we need to find your brothers."

"FAB Father, I'll keep you posted. Mobile Control out."

He turned the monitor's screen around so it was aimed at the cave, so his father could now watch them work.

Virgil paused as Gordon ran over and climbed inside the Mole with him. "Okay bro, let's do this!"

Shifting the controls, Virgil let the Mole do it's job as it tunnelled them under the fallen rocks, and made a new hole inside the cave, far enough away from the old entrance not to unset the rocks.

The lights from the Mole lit up the caves gloomy interior.

"Wow!" exclaimed Gordon, "I bet John hates it down here!"

"Yeah, I bet he does. Lets get out and see where they are."

TBTBTB

Alan punched the air and let out a yelp of joy, "Wah who!"

Flicking another switch he gave his father the good news.

"We have a strong signal on the tracer on John's watch, sir." he reported to his father excitedly.

Jeff ran a hand through his grey hair, turning away from the cave scene to look at his youngest son's bright face. "Just John? What about Scott's tracer?"

Alan's face fell, "I…Its not registering at all sir."

"Keep trying son, at least we know they work."

"Yes sir" he answered in a frustrated voice, hating being up in the space station, feeling helpless and wondering how John coped with all the stress it caused him to feel.

"Y… You know Mr Tracy," Brains stuttered as Alan's portrait returned to normal, "Maybe the tracker has malfunctioned. I never really h…had the chance to test them properly."

Jeff turned to the young scientist, "Maybe. But your not one to 'mess-up' on these sort of things are you, my friend?"

Brains took the compliment in his stride, "That may be so Mr Tracy, but even I c…can make mistakes."

"Not this time, Brains. I've got a feeling about this, and it's not a good one." Jeff turned his attention back to the view of the cave, awaiting the return of the Mole.

TBTBTB

Letting out a soft groan, he groggily rolled onto his side and his eyes fluttered open.

Darkness.

Blinking in shock, he tried to remember where he was. Why couldn't he see? Why was he cold? And wet? He moved his arm to feel his head, not sure if his eyes were covered, but discovered they were not.

Letting out a louder groan this time, he became more aware and alert. He sat up, feeling like jelly. Shivering he pressed the torch button on his wristwatch, lighting up the cave.

Then he remembered.

"What the hell is going on?" He whispered harshly as he dared, realising he was alone in the gloom. Wesley had disappeared.

Cursing to himself, he used the wall to push himself to his feet, and slowly made his way back through the tunnel he had come from, hoping that his brother had not succumbed to the same fate as he had.

Then he heard voices. Pausing to listen, he shrunk back against the damp, rough wall to trying to remain hidden, not sure if they were friend or foe.

The footsteps echoed, becoming louder with each passing second. As the glow of a lamp illuminated the area, he nearly laughed in relief as he recognised the voices.

"Virgil! Gordon! I'm over here!"

The voices stopped suddenly, then the footsteps changed into a run and his two brothers appeared in front of him, bringing greater light, and he basked in the love and support of their presence as they hugged him with joy.

"John! Thank God!" laughed Gordon, stepping back to look over his slender brother.

"Where's Scott?" asked Virgil as he pulled his brother away from the wall to support him.

Gordon and Virgil looked the way John had come from expectantly, as if Scott might appear from that direction.

"What do you mean?" Asked John in concern "He's not outside?"

"Oh shit" was the only answer he got from Gordon, as his brothers glanced at each other with troubled expressions.

TBTBTB


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Numb.

His whole body was numb, even in his mind he felt nothing.

He was vaguely aware of a buzzing noise, or maybe more of a throbbing sound at the edge of his hearing. His brain would not work properly for him to figure out what it was.

Trying to summon his consciousness awake, his face muscles tensed from the effort it took, but it was worth it, as the noise became a more familiar, louder sound of a machine engine.

He tried to open his eyes next, to look where he was. Managing to blink them open, he was dismayed when everything was blurred together. To his brain, it was just a mass of grey, blue and black with no shape or form.

Breathing deeply from his efforts, he attempted to lift his head, but his head barely rose and instead just rolled to the right, too unresponsive and heavy for him to lift in his present state. Failing that, he refused to give in, to stay locked with in his own body, so he made do with trying to get his eyes to focus properly.

He willed his eyes open once again, this time he was greeted by pink and orange, and bright red dots on a slim figure sitting next to him. He tried to say something, trying to get the person's attention, but the engines drowned out his whispered groan.

He strived to get his mind to work. Trying to figure out where he was and how he got here. Useless. His mind was still too fuzzy.

He forced himself to raise his hand, his fingers twitched, then clenched as a tingling sensation spread up his numb arm, slowly his body returned to him a little feeling.

Gritting his teeth with exertion, he felt his arm move up slowly and concentrated on getting the attention of the person sitting on his right. Beads of sweat broke out over his body, and on his forehead with the sheer effort he had put into lifting his arm, which felt like lead.

His hand got higher and higher. With a final struggle, he forced his arm to move to the right and the motion knocked his hand onto the figure's leg, which he felt beneath his hand and he gripped the knee of the person with all his might, not wanting to let go now he could feel something. He hated being helpless.

The instant his fingers grabbed the person's knee, he heard voices shouting around him, but he was unable to understand them. He did not recognise the voices and his troubled mind fixed his vision on the red haired figure shouting.

The person removed his hand from their leg, holding it tightly in their own. Leaning closer, he became aware that the person was a woman, she moved her hand to his head as he felt a pin prick in his other arm. Panicking, unable to protest physically, he fought the loss of feeling as the drug spread throughout his body like a sudden wave. He tried to focus on the face of the woman, but his eyes slid shut and he was placed once again into nothingness.

TBTBTB

The occupants of the helicopter had been airborne for hours, having made a successful escape from Mexico and into North America, heading for Los Angeles.

No one spoke.

Each was lost in his or her own thoughts. Wolf gazed often at Vixen, who was watching the passing land below as they flew by, her perfectly manicured hands resting lightly on her slim legs.

He studied her physique, the elegance of the way she held herself even when she was just sitting. He'd been smitten by her from the first time he'd set eyes upon her. He liked the way her flaming red hair complemented her creamy complexion and her elf-like features. He completely fell into her deep dark eyes and he wanted her more than anything he had ever known.

She belonged to Snake back then, but now, thanks to the unconscious man lying between them, he would be able to reveal his emotions to her, without the risk of his life.

He owed Scott, big time.

His eyes drifted to the front of the helicopter, pondering on his teammates.

Weasel was perched on the edge of his seat. He hated flying, but put up with it for Vixen's sake.

He was the closest one of the group to Vixen, having been the one to introduce Snake and Vixen in the first place. No one knew what their connection was, here history was history. No one cared, no one asked, so long as everyone got paid.

The huge man flying the helicopter was ex-army. Croc had been with Snake the longest out of the group. He and Rhino were old ex-army buddies. No one asked why they were thrown out.

Pushing a restless hand through his light blond hair, Wolf jumped as Vixen suddenly gasped and shouted out.

"E's awake!"

All three men swung their heads towards Vixen and their passenger, who had his hand gripping Vixen's knee tightly.

His chest was heaving from the effort, his pale face taut and covered in sweat. His eyes focused on Vixen, her voice guiding his vision to look upon her stunned face.

"Jesus, Weasel, how much stuff did you put in that dart?" Wolf shouted at the smaller man.

"Enough" Weasel yelled back over the noise of the engine, shock registered in his face. "He should be out for a few more hours yet!"

"Well. E's not!" Vixen answered him. "How long did Caspian say to leave before we can give him ze next dose?"

Weasel looked at her with hard eyes, "Just said to leave three hours between the first and second doses, then every six hours until the 5th one, then 12 hours." He looked down at his watch, "We'll have to sedate him again."

She nodded at Wolf, who already had another syringe in his hand, the pointed needle gleaming in the sunlight.

The International Rescue man was still holding Vixen's leg as if his life depended on it, and now his mouth was moving, trying to speak. Vixen removed his hand from her leg and gripped it with her own.

Twisting around so her face was inches away from his own, she nodded to Wolf to inject him.

Her eyes returned to the good looking young man at her mercy, she gazed deep into the man's confused blue eyes and as the sedation flowed back into his system, blackening once again the edges of his vision. She saw the fight in his eyes as he tried to refuse to be shut down again.

She knew it was a losing battle. She admired his strength of will as she pushed her spare hand through his dark hair to soothe his weakening protests. As his eyes closed and his body succumbed to the drugs, his breathing relaxed. She ran her fingers gently over his handsome face, looking forward to meeting him properly when they arrived at their present hideout.

Wolf watched Vixen as she soothed the man as the drug took effect. He felt the stirrings of jealousy, wishing it were him she was running her fingers over.

TBTBTB

"Pull out, boys" Jeff Tracy announced, reluctantly and with another heavey sigh, he ordered his remaining sons to leave the area. As protests came back from all the portraits, Jeff raised his tired voice at them, "It's no good, we're not going to find him there. Come home now."

Gordon and John started to object again.

"NOW BOYS. That's an order!" Jeff bellowed at them, they stared at him in shock and anger.

"YES SIR!" they all answered, only Virgil realised their father was right.

He looked over at his brothers. John was feeling guilty. They all knew there was nothing he could have done, but he had been there with Scott, and now Scott was gone.

Gordon was angry. His amber eyes flashed his disappointment in their father for calling them back.

John made his way over to Thunderbird One as Virgil and Gordon put away the Mole.

Together they took off in formation back towards Tracy Island.

They had been at the site for hours, searching the depths of the cave. Gordon had gone down to explore just in case there was someone to rescue. They also cleared the rocks from the cave entrance and flew around the area, using their scanners since Alan could still not pick up on Scott's tracer.

TBTBTB

"Well Parker, Jeff and the boy's need our help." The posh voice of Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward echoed around the sitting room of the manor house.

"Of course they do, mi-lady" was the nasal reply.

"Oh dear, I do hope Scott is unharmed," standing up, she walked to the door where Parker was standing. "Get the Rolls, Parker, we need to visit some old friends of yours."

"Yes milady, h'it will be nice to see 'em again. They will know who these faces belong too." He motioned the photos Jeff had faxed them.

"Yes, well let's not keep him waiting."

"Very good, mi-lady." Parker left the room to prepare for the trip to the largest prison in the world.

Alcatraz, San Francisco.

New and improved. Holding all the worlds criminals, whether petty thieves or big time gangsters and murders. Including a certain Snake and Rhino…

TBTBTB


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

The night drew in on Tracy Island. It seemed deserted as the residents retired to their rooms in order to get some rest before starting their search again the following morning.

On their return to base, Gordon stormed up into the control room, throwing the bag containing the dart he'd found earlier down on the desk in front of his father, he started fuming, reminding him the importance of family and the main rule of International Rescue.

"Never give up at any cost!" He shouted at Jeff, his face red and eyes shinning with anger. His father at first did not respond, but looked tiredly at his furious son as the others filed into the room to observe the 'discussion'.

"We're not." He answered, his voice gruff with emotion. The boys all waited for him to continue. "Scott's gone. For some reason those people took him. No matter how long we searched, you wouldn't have found him there."

John stood quietly, watching his father carefully, knowing more was to come. Virgil flanked Gordon, ready to restrain his younger brother from doing something he would regret, if things got out of hand.

"I've got Penny on the case, we should know more in the morning. You all need your rest. Go to bed boys, you won't be any use to Scott if you're falling asleep on your feet."

Gordon started to protest again, before Jeff finally lost his temper and bellowed at them all to go to their rooms and stay there until breakfast time. Just like when they were kids, thought Virgil, almost smiling at the memory as he pulled both his siblings out of the room and pushed Gordon to the sleeping quarters.

As the boys left and went their separate ways, Jeff heaved a heavy sigh of sadness. He hated shouting at them, but sometimes they just would not listen to reason, especially when it concerned a member of the close family group.

Jeff sat up that night with Brains, re-playing the recordings from Scott's last transmission, and the Mobile control unit's video screen. They watched the large man standing over the Mobile Control Unit with his arm raised, about to smash it, and then the stunningly beautiful woman, who seemed familiar with the complex control panel.

Whilst the boys were flying home, Jeff had called Penny and sent her out to investigate with Parker, faxing them copies of the red haired woman and her burly companion. The contacts they had in the 'underworld' would surely have heard a whisper of the IR agent that had been kidnapped. That kind of thing would get around, if money was wanted for him to be returned.

What got to Jeff the most was the fact that they only took Scott, why didn't they take John, as well as Mobile Control and even pictures of Thunderbird One? International Rescue had been at their mercy. They had received no ransom demands at all. Yet.

Did these people have a personal vendetta against him? Scott's last whispered words echoed in his mind, "Security Van". What about a security van? Had there been a security van there? Someone Scott knew perhaps? His mind twisted around as tiredness pushed in on him.

"You should get some sleep too mister Tracy" Kyrano's voice broke through his thoughts. "You should take the same advice you gave your sons sir. They need you to be in control." His voice was soft and comforting. "Go to bed mister Tracy, nothing more can be done this night."

Jeff slowly stood up from his chair, "Your right Kyrano, I guess I am a little tired."

He turned to look where Brains had been sitting, and found the young scientist had already gone. Smiling at Kyrano, he made his way to his own bedroom to lie down to attempt sleep, before resuming the search in the morning.

TBTBTB

Snake paced the floor impatiently. He'd been locked up for two weeks awaiting his trial. He had been questioned one to many times and finally blew up and punched the officer who was interviewing him, and his lawyer too, for being a complete idiot for wanting him to tell them everything they wanted to know.

Snake bided his time. His contacts inside the prison had got hold of Croc, who had been keeping him up to date with Vixen's recent activities.

As he strode back the other way, he heard the alarm bells suddenly set off.

Smiling, he readied himself for some action.

It was time to get out of this joint. Freedom beckoned him. There was going to be some serious payback coming up, cracking his knuckles in readiness, he braced himself as the cell door slid open.

Stepping out, he made his escape, grabbing Rhino as he ran past his cell, they ran to the pre-arranged location for pick-up.

TBTBTB

The pink Rolls Royce pulled up at the dockside.

As Parker opened the door for Penny to climb out, they could hear the alarm sirens going off across the stretch of water between them and the prison island, Alcatraz.

"Looks like we are on time mi-lady." Parker announced.

Taking his hand as she rose out of the car, she smiled and answered "It does rather, doesn't it Parker. If your friend Jerry was correct, the people we need to talk to are inside, unless it's them who are attempting to escape of course!"

Just then a large Heli-jet flew over them with a ladder hanging underneath it. As it fired shots at the prison automated guard posts, it hovered near the roof just long enough for two men to grab hold of the ladder before it took off and flew back towards them.

"Parker…"

"Yes maam." He answered as he climbed back inside and took aim.

Getting a close look at the men climbing up the ladder, Penny was surprised by one of the men's face art, as he saluted her as they flew past. The other man wolf whistled at her.

She rolled her eyes in disgust.

Parker fired a homing device from the back of FAB 1, which hit its target and instantly started transmitting bleeps back to the car.

"Target secure, mi-lady," Parker informed her.

"Very good Parker" she glanced over at the prison, "Shall we?"

"H'indeed." And together they walked the short distance to the prison boat, which was waiting to take them across the water.

TBTBTB

Scott felt like he was floating. His mind was still fuzzy, leaving him disorientated. But he was starting to come round again. Gradually he became aware of sounds of someone in the room with him.

Not sure of what was happening, he carefully opened his eyes too reveal a small white room with no windows. He felt stronger and turned his head towards the sound and saw a handsome, blond haired man who looked very familiar, but Scott couldn't remember who he was.

The man suddenly noticed his movements as Scott sat up on the bed that he'd been laying on.

"Ah, you're finally awake, Nix." Smiling at the confused face of the dark brown haired man, Wolf stood up and came around the desk to sit on the edge of the bed. "You really had us worried bruv." He paused, looking deep into Scott's confused eyes "You don't know who I am do you?" It was more of a statement than a question, and Scott shook his head no.

Scott tried to talk, but his throat was dry and scratchy, Wolf gave him a glass of water and waited for him to say something.

Scott's mind swirled as he tried to remember this man who claimed to be his brother.

"I'm sorry," Scott whispered "I…I…don't remember you, well, I do recognise you, but….its all fuzzy, you know?" He put a hand on his head and rubbed his brow at the headache that had started to pierce his brain.

"No problem, little brother." Wolf smiled, "I'm guessing you got a killer head ache coming on. Right?"

Scott grimaced, "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"I'm your brother, you've had them since you were a kid. I've got your meds here, Nix." He made to roll up Scott's sleeve on his shirt, but as Wolf raised the needle to his arm, something in Scott told him this was wrong. "No, wait, stop." He blurted out, unsure about himself and his 'brother'. "What is that?"

Wolf had expected him to re-act this way, after all, Scott had only been given two doses so far. The needle contained the all important third dose that Caspian had given them.

"Hey, chill out Nix, I know you don't remember much right now, but they pulled a real good job on you. You're safe bruv, International Rescue can't find us here. Let me give you this before that head of yours splits in two!"

Scott's eyes lit up. He had strong feelings for International Rescue, and the mention of their name stirred his fading memories. As he zoned out trying to recall them, Wolf injected him with the needle.

Scott jumped, and frowned. "Hey, wait….your….not….my….brothe..r.." His voice becoming weaker. He quickly succumbed to the drug, which was already present in his body. As he drifted once again into darkness, he caught a glimpse of the red haired lady walking into the room and she cupped his face in her hands. Wolf laid him back down on the bed as he lost the fight against the drug in his system.

Turning to look upon Vixen, Wolf asked her "So Foxy, did you see how confused he was, but he recognised me, and for a moment he believed that I was his brother! This is a great idea of yours. Caspian was right, this drug is amazing!"

Putting a manicured hand on Wolf's shoulder, she answered him with a smile. "Yes it is, isn't it!" Squeezing her hand on him, she continued, "You are our key to getting him to trust us. The studies show that the IR organisation are related, most likely brothers, so your treating him that way is vital. You did well."

Moving to the door, with Wolf following, she paused to look once more on the handsome young man on the bed. "Soon we shall have more power than even you have ever imagined. Let's see how Weasel is getting on." As they walked out Wolf asked her "Have you seen Croc since we landed?"

Shaking her head no, "Who knows what that brute does when he's not flying for us? Soon we shall be able to drop him from the team anyway, once our new pilot is up and running. Our client is almost ready for his test pilot to fly his new plane, the one we stole the stealth component for."

Grinning, Wolf put his arm around her waist, and together they went to find Weasel.

TBTBTB

As dawn broke over the beautiful tropical Island, the restlessness of the family seemed to effect the peaceful image the island normally had.

Jeff ran his hand uneasily through his hair for the twentieth time since getting Brain's message asking him to come to the lab.

Jeff and Brains then summoned the brothers to a meeting in the control room. Alan listened in as well. Brains cleared his voice, ready to report the results on the dart that Gordon had found the day before, next to Mobile Control.

They took seats and waited for Brains to begin.

"Well, I….I….took a sample from the drop of liquid left inside the dart, and w…w…what I found, is, w…well…" The boys held their breath, waiting for the scientist to reveal what their father already knew. "It was a very strong sedative…."

They all let out a sigh of relief, "Thank God!" Alan said what the brothers were thinking.

"A…and a trace of …of..a .. new drug, which shows it may be used for brain washing, or to help mind reprogramming."

All their faces fell. "No!" John whispered, his older brother would not succumb to a drug such as this. Scott was too strong willed to be controlled.

"Do you know this drug, Brains?" Virgil asked calmly, though he was just as upset as his family.

"Well, I..I..know of it. I called in a few favours, and it seems this is still being tested, though some was stolen a while ago. It was never recovered."

"Are there any side effects?" John asked, standing up and walking over to his father, perching himself on the desk.

"M..maybe, as I said…it's still being tested." Brains answered. He avoided looking at anyone, instead fixed his gaze on Scott's portrait.

Virgil and John risked a quick look at each other, then at their father. They knew Brains was holding back, and probably for the sake of the two youngest Tracys.

Just then, Penelope's portraits eyes began flashing, alerting them to answer her long awaited call.

"Jeff here, good to see you Penny. How did you get on?" All faces were glued to the lovely face on the vid-screen.

"Hello Jeff, boys." She smiled at them, "We are at present in San Francisco, and we've been visiting a few of Parker's friends. Well, we were lucky. The pictures you sent me got quite a reaction. It seems they are well known within the, er…criminal world."

"Go on Penny, who are they? What do they want with Scott?" Jeff pushed her to continue.

"Well Jeff, the lady's known as the Foxy Lady, but also as Vixen. She works with a group of criminals that operate for the highest bidder, sort of 'guns for hire'. The man in the other picture is called 'Croc' by the, er, people we spoke to."

"Well at least we know who we're dealing with. Thanks Penny." Jeff glanced at John, who was closest to him. "Penny, we owe you big time…."

Penny broke in before he could finish his thanks, "That's not all Jeff. I'm afraid I have a bit more news for you, and I'm not sure you'll like all of it."

His face fell, as did everyone else's. Penny's heart went out to them, knowing how close they all were as a family, and glad to be part of it.

"Go on." He said, his deep voice guarding his emotions.

"When we arrived at the prison, there was a breakout going on. Two prisoners got away. It looked well planned. Parker shot a tracer on the heli-jet as it flew past us. We never thought more about it until we found out that the leader of the group that kidnapped Scott was one of the men who escaped, the other man was his accomplice."

Jeff frowned, his mind working as he worked out the sequence of events.

"There's more, isn't there?" John looked Penny in the eyes, and she stared back at him.

"Yes John, I'm afraid there is." Sighing and hating to have to be the one to tell them she told them the worst part. "I'll give you a clue who these men are. You know them, or of them. The leader is called Snake, he was the one Scott apprehended a few weeks ago on a rescue, …"

Gordon leaped to his feet, "Shit, then the other one is the guy that jumped me!"

They were all standing now, angry. "Security van! Now I understand what he was trying to tell me! How the hell did they get out?" Jeff demanded.

"Apparently they have very powerful friends." She took another deep breath "Don't worry, I'm still tracking that Heli-jet. With any luck it will lead us straight to Scott."

"Don't you do a thing Penny. These people are dangerous. Send the tracer's signal code up to Alan in Thunderbird Five so we can track it from here."

"But Jeff…." She started, disappointed that he still didn't see that she was ready to face any sort of action. She could look after herself.

"No, Penny. That's an order. Stay where you are, we'll contact you if we need anything else. You've done a great job. Jeff out."

Jeff turned to his son's who stared back at him.

"Dad, I think that was a bit … harsh." Virgil began, "Penny's got more info for us in a few hours than we were able to bring up on our own in a day."

Jeff sighed and ran his hand back through his grey hair. "I just don't want her to get hurt. I did a bit of research on this group myself. They are not to be taken lightly. They already have your brother, God knows what they are doing to him…" He stopped talking as he realised he had spoken his worries out loud.

"Alan, have you had that tracer located yet?"

Alan flicked a couple of switches, "Yes father, I've got it loud and clear. Present location is …. LA." He looked back at his father, waiting his next command.

"Well boys. Thunderbirds are go!"

They stood straight, smiling. "YES SIR!"

"Virgil, take Thunderbird Two. John and Gordon will both go with you." Turning back to Alan, "Give them the co-ordinates when they're airborne."

"YES SIR!" His youngest son beamed at him. Finally they had a chance of rescuing their older brother.

As the boys left the room, Jeff whispered to himself, "Bring him home boys, bring him home."

TBTBTB


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Two days later

"Check"

"Fuel gauge?"

"Check" came the deep voice confidently over the radio.

"Oxygen?"

"Check. All pre-flight systems ready and completed for test flight."

"Okay Pheonix, await orders for take-off." Wolf ordered.

"FAB control."

"What?" Came the amused tone.

"Um..I mean, understood. Over and out." Pheonix answered, frowning as he tried to remember why he automatically said those words. He mentally shook his mind, reminding himself what his older brother had told him about International Rescue's mind tricks. He wondered how long it would be before things would get back to normal, and how long it would be before they found him.

The voice of Wolf broke his musings, "Control to Pheonix. Come in, Bruv."

"Pheonix here."

"Prepare to take-off, all clearance given in 2 minutes. Test flight route A2"

"Right."

"We have a World Navy Ship on our screens in that area, so let's really put this baby to the test. You show us her paces, Bruv."

"FA … Yes Sir." Pheonix replied, correcting his mistake.

"Don't worry about it, Bruv, it's gonna take a while for their control to lose it's grip on you. Just push away any thoughts you have of them, and keep focused on the task at hand. Okay?"

"Sure thing Wolf. It's just, well, hard." Pheonix answered softly

"I know, Nix, we'll get them back, they won't get away with what they put you through. Foxy will make sure of it."

Pheonix started to drift into his memories as he started to get flash backs and bits of memories push to the surface of his mind. He saw a grey haired man shouting at him for doing something wrong, he saw a flash of a knife and remembered pain. He subconsciously rubbed his arm where he had been stabbed. Another image flashed in front of his eyes. He remembered being dragged across a large room, by a blond haired young man, who seemed so familiar, but he could not place his name or face.

"Pheonix, count down. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6…" Wolf started to count him down, pausing between each number, readying the pilot for the newly built supersonic stealth jet.

"Huh?" Pheonix automatically responded to the countdown.

"5, 4, 3,…" Wolf continued. Pheonix pulled himself together and quickly pressed the controls, and was ready and took off as Wolf said the last two numbers.

"2, 1, GO!"

The black jet surged forward, shooting out the hidden entrance from the abandoned train tunnel, the new tarmac runway hidden from prying eyes. Pheonix smiled as the adrenalin rush caught him as he accelerated into the sky reaching Mach 1 in minutes of leaving the tunnel.

"Tracking your speed, Pheonix, now approaching Mach 2! How's she feel, Bruv?" Wolf's excited voice asked.

"Whoa, she's a beaut, alright. Reminds me of those old Wobblin' Gobblin's, but faster and a much smoother flight." Pheonix answered, grinning.

Wolf's grin was just as large as he watched the screen with Weasel and Vixen standing silently behind him. Their eyes followed the dot's progress as it reached its test target, the World Navy's Flagship.

"Speed now reaching 1687.5mph, Mach 2 ½. Hull temperature off the scale, last check was rising 140C!" Pheonix wiped the sweat off his forehead as it began to drip in his eyes. "Boy, it's sure getting hot in here!"

"You're doing well, Bruv. Turn on the Stealth now, then double back to fire at target."

"FAB. Slowing to turn now, flying at 60,000ft," he flicked a few switches "Stealth on, dropping to 20,000ft. Target in sight. Locked on and firing….NOW!" he reported, pressing the red button that released the missiles from the jet.

They hurtled towards their target, and before the ship could even trigger the alarm, it had a direct hit to the stern. The crew were thrown in all directions, panic and chaos ensued as the men and woman of the crew tried to find the exits as the ship dived nose first beneath the waves, floating for a couple of minutes like a cork, before sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

In the few minutes it bobbed, the radio controller was able to send out a distress call, and turn on the SOS beacon, in the hope that someone would find them. The Captain shouted for the ship to be locked down. The air locks slid shut on the remaining windows and doors, locking the people inside the coffin as it sunk to its grave.

Pheonix flew back towards the tunnel, his eyes shinning with delight. "Target hit. Mission test flight completed."

"Well done, Nix. Return home."

"FAB control"

Switching off the radio, Wolf turned around and put his arms around Vixen's waist, hugging her close. "So Foxy, satisfied?" he teased.

She pushed herself higher and kissed him on the lips, and he devoured her back. She broke the kiss, her face beaming. "Bravo, my Wolf. No one will stop us now. Our client will be pleased with this result. Let's turn on the television and see if the demands have been made yet."

Weasel narrowed his eyes at them as they embraced, and turned his attention back to the screen as the jet returned to it's hiding place in the abandoned train tunnel.

Pheonix skillfully landed the jet in the hangar and turned her around for the next flight. As he prepared to turn off the control panels, his hand started to shake. He looked confused as he watched his quivering hand shook in front of his eyes. He lifted his other hand to stop it and to his shock saw that they were both trembling, badly and he couldn't stop them. He then began to feel like something awful had happened, and put his head into his hands, gripping his dark brown hair tightly to try to remember why he would feel this way. Tears leaked out of his shut eyes and he had no idea why. Then it hit him. He had just fired at a ship, and sunk it. People would die because of him. What was wrong with him?

"Control to Pheonix, why are you still in the jet?" Weasel asked the young man, after about 5 minutes had passed with no transmission, getting the attention of Wolf and Vixen.

There was no answer.

"Control to Pheonix. Answer the question. What are you doing?" Weasel was getting irritated.

Wolf moved closer and took the radio out of Weasels hand as Weasel scowled at him. "Nix, what's going on? Answer me, Bruv." His voice full of concern.

They waited, but no sound was heard. "Shit." Wolf exclaimed, and ran out the door, heading for the hanger with the others right behind him. As they passed a cabinet, Wolf paused to grab a syringe and a small bottle.

The water system had sprayed the plane and it was cool enough to touch. Pressing the hatch button, Wolf held his breath as the cockpit slowly opened up to reveal the pilot within.

The young man was slumped over the controls, his head resting on his hands. His shoulders were shaking.

Wolf reached out his hand and touched his shoulder, squeezing him to get his attention. Pheonix lifted his tear stained face to look into the eyes of his older brother.

"What did you make me do?" He whispered, "That ship had people in it, didn't it!"

He shoved Wolf's hand off his shoulder and unstrapped himself. Wolf watched him, not saying anything.

He took a step back to let the dark haired man climb out onto the platform.

"Nix, we …" He started to say, but he was cut off by an angry voice.

"Liar!" He shouted, "You… you're all lying to me!" Shaking his head to try and clear it he continued "And I'm not your brother!" He swung around to face Wolf and pointed his finger at him "Who the hell are you? What do you want with me?" His hand was still visibly shaking, he quickly put it down and started walking away with long strides.

Wolf sighed, glancing at Vixen who nodded at him. Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly before following.

"Nix, wait, please wait." He called and ran to catch him up. "It's bloody International Rescue talking again! Think bruv. Come on, I know you're in there somewhere! I want my brother back!" His voice raised in pitch of desperation. That stopped the confused man in his steps.

"I … I don't know, I … I….Who am I?" He covered his face with his hands once again and Wolf turned him around pulled the man into an embrace.

"It's okay Nix. I promise you we will get through this together. You're not alone any more. They won't get you back. I promise."

Tears trickled down Scott's face as he wanted to believe his brother, but he could not help not trusting him. His head began to pound and he gasped as a sudden sharp pain spiked within his head, threatening to split him in two.

"Argh, damn." He swore as the pain nearly drove him to his knees.

Wolf held onto him, "Here Nix, I've got your meds." He eased the other man to the floor and pulled up his sleeve. He pushed the needle in as Pheonix lost consciousness.

Vixen and Weasel caught them up and watched as Wolf held the man in his arms.

He looked up as they arrived, "How long will these headaches last? What did Caspian say about them?" He inquired. He was worried. This one was worse than any of the others the young man had seen.

Weasel frowned when he answered, "Not a lot, only that the drug is new and is still being tested. Said there were side effects, but was never clear on it."

Vixen looked cross, "Well, see if you can find out more. We can't have 'im collapsing on a flight, not after all the work it's taken us to get this far."

She paused to look upon the pale face of the unconscious man on the floor. "Get him back to his room. Inform me when he wakes, he still is not completely in our control. Maybe he needs more convincing. The drug should be strong enough, but he is strong willed. Maybe we should double the dose?"

She walked off with Weasel, leaving the two men on the floor. Wolf looked slightly shocked at her change in attitude towards him. One minute lover, next minute slave.

TBTBTB

"Damn it!" Jeff swore out loud as yet another location had been reported in as negative.

John, Virgil and Gordon had arrived back at Tracy Island two days ago, empty handed and deflated. They had found the Heli-jet, but there had been no sight of Scott or any member of the group that took him. The Heli-jet was unregistered and Interpol now had it in custody.

With no leads coming up, it seemed quiet and Jeff alerted all the agents to report anything that might be linked with Scott's disappearance.

They were all out of ideas.

Alan's portrait began to flash and everyone rushed into the control room as Jeff pressed the switch so they could talk.

"What have you got, son?"

Alan's tired face looked back at his father, lack of sleep due to worry had taken its toll on even the youngest Tracy member. "There's a distress call been put out by the World Navy's Flagship. It appears it's been attacked and was sinking when the call came through. I've had no more contact from them. They have switched on their SOS beacon."

"Attacked? Who would be stupid enough to attack the World Navy? Where is she?"

"In the North Atlantic Ocean, mid-way between Bermuda and Madeira. I can give exact co-ordinates on the way."

Jeff looked at his sons, his eyes deep with worry. What was the world coming too? Shaking his head he decided the action. "Right Alan, good job. Inform them we are on our way. Virgil take pod 4. Gordon you'll go on this one. Get going, boys. Thunderbirds are Go!"

John made no comment at his father's decision, but waited until his brothers were on their way before making himself known.

"Father, what do you want me to do?"

Jeff turned his chair to face his remaining son, and smiled at him with sad eyes. "You stay here, boy. We may hear something about Scott. I want to know that when he needs us, if he somehow gets in contact with us, that we can respond instantly, and keep International Rescue operating at the same time."

John smiled back at his father, knowing Scott would agree with the decision. He wouldn't want his family to risk other people's lives for his own life.

"Okay father, I'll go keep an eye on the News, see if there's any news about this attack being reported."

Jeff nodded and turned his attention back to Thunderbird Two's progress.

John wondered away into the other room and switched on the television.

As he expected, they were reporting the attack on most of the channels. International Rescue were mentioned every other minute as being the only ones who could save the crew. He gave himself a small smile, knowing they were right about that.

They then went on to report that the attack had happened so fast that no one knew they were being attacked until they had been hit. A craft, not seen on radiar, faster than anything they had ever seen before. Few eyewitnesses had been found.

A cruise ship had been in the area, and one of the passengers had been filming when the craft appeared. The craft so mysterious, that the passenger was claiming it was aliens from outer space, declaring war on the Earth.

John laughed out loud at that, and then they played the recording in slow motion and enlarged the picture. John's eyes widened in surprise, that was no UFO, that was a supersonic aircraft. He was mesmerised by the beauty of the machine, worthy of Brains himself.

He was about to call Scott, forgetting for a brief moment that his brother was missing, knowing his older brother would love to see and fly this plane. Only a skilled pilot would be able to fly such a jet, Scott being one of the few.

John shook his head as he watched the replay in normal speed, and was amazed at the precision of the pilot. John knew how difficult it was to make a manoeuvre like that, at that speed. He let out a low whistle of admiration, except for the fact this guy had just put the entire military in the world on alert. Any wrong move by any country could cause a war.

Letting out a breath, John changed channels to find the people who were claiming responsibility for the attack were demanding a ransom.

"Dad, I think you better see this!" He called through to his father, Jeff appeared at the door.

"What is it?" He breathed out in a rush.

John pointed at the screen, Jeff's eyes widened as the screen showed the face they all knew so well, threatening more destruction throughout the world, not only on the military, but also civilians. She demanded that all the world leaders put in one billion American dollars, to pay them off. They would give them 24 hours before they would strike again, then they would keep attacking something every two hours until every country had paid up.

Jeff and John stared at each other.

Realisation dawned on John, as he put the pieces of the puzzle together.

"Dad, I think you better sit down." Jeff stared at John. "Trust me, I know it sounds crazy, but I think it was Scott who attacked that ship."

"What!" Jeff exclaimed, then the television caught his attention once more as they replayed the video of the jet in slow motion and then at normal speed.

"Oh God, no!" He gasped, and sat down heavily on the chair behind him, "Oh my poor boy! What have you done? Oh God"

John knelt down next to his father, "Dad, get a grip, people need you. Scott needs you. Hell, I need you to be strong." Taking a deep breath John continued. "At least we know he's alive, we just need to get him back. Let's get back into the control room. Maybe Alan can get a pinpoint on that jet. I'll call up Brains."

Jeff stood up straight, a sharp look on his face, "You're right son. I'll get the ball rolling."

John smiled as his father took over, once again the commander of International Rescue. This time they had to prevent rescues, by rescuing their brother.

"Oh boy!" John murmured as he followed the man he loved and respected.

TBTBTB


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The three men cautiously made their way down into the dark tunnel, their footsteps echoing off the walls as they walked the length of the tarmac runway.

When they reached the hanger, the red lights made them squint as they emerged from the dark tunnel, keeping to the shadows so they remained hidden. They were surprised that no one seemed to be around.

"She sure is an amazing craft." The tallest man gruffly whispered in admiration as he took in the details of the stealth jet. She did look like an alien spaceship. Her hull was shaped in such a way that it reflected any radar that may try to track her, and the component that was stolen from the Ship Security van a couple of weeks earlier had been successfully installed in her systems, making satellite tracking impossible. Unless you had the correct code.

"Yeah. I'm gonna make Vixen regret the day she tried to turn the client against me." Snake narrowed his eyes as the side door slid open and a figure walked into the hanger, going to a control panel by the side of the jet.

Signalling Croc and Rhino to move in separate directions so they had the man surrounded Snake waited until they were in position before he made his presence known.

"Well, well, well." He started loudly, his voice making Weasel jump in surprise. "Looks like you're doing just great without me. How did you manage it?" He strode over to Weasel as the small man tried to back away from him towards the side door.

"Snake! H…How did you escape?" He gathered his thoughts as quickly as he could. "We thought you were gone for good!" he said out loud by accident, before clamping his lips shut.

Snake smiled grimly.

Rhino and Croc appeared, blocking his escape route. Weasel licked his lips nervously, as he glanced swiftly at the large men behind him, obstructing the door. He began to sweat in fear of the return of the dangerous man he wanted to be rid of for so long. He was not sure he would even leave the hangar alive.

"Really? How stupid of you." He reached forward grabbing Weasel's throat between his thumb and forefinger, squeezing his windpipe, making the man gasp. Weasel's eyes watered, and widened in horror and pain, he grabbed at Snakes arm to try to get him to release his hold. But Snake was much stronger.

Snake shook his head, "Ah, ah, ah. I might let you go, if you can prove that you'll be useful to me." He released his hold and Weasel fell in a heap on the floor, gasping, trying to catch his breath and rubbing his bruised neck.

"Where is Foxy? Is my bitch here?" Weasel closed his eyes, not wanting to drop her in it. But a swift kick on his back from Rhino changed his mind.

"Argh. Yes! Yes, Vixen is out the back with …." He stopped, not wanting to say who she was with, but Snake heard anyway.

"So she's with someone. Hmm. Already replaced me has she?" He looked up at Croc and Rhino and grinned at them, thinking he knew whom she was with. "What do you think of that boys, shall we go and teach the cubs a lesson?"

They both nodded, twin expressions of delight on both their faces. Rhino cracked his knuckles in preparation.

"Okay, lets go pay them a visit." He looked down at Weasel, "I might need you later, so you're going to have to come with us. For now." He flicked his head down at the man on the floor and Rhino grabbed both his arms, hauling him up and dragged him out the hanger following Snake and Croc, who led the way.

"But Snake, we had to carry on as planned! We came up with an idea which the Client loved, and with everything that happened when you were arrested, we had to make ……adjustments." Weasel gushed out at Snakes back. He had to talk them out of destroying everything he and Vixen had worked so hard to achieve.

"Adjustments?" Snake laughed out loud as they walked down the corridor, "Is that what you call it? Leaving me and Rhino to rot in that bloody prison for two weeks? While you guys take off with all the cash? I don't think so my weasely friend."

Weasel swallowed in fear and glanced at the security camera in the hope that Wolf was paying attention in the control room. "No! We planned on having you released in the next 24 hours. The prison was next on our target list!"

Rhino snorted in disbelief, "You mean you was gonna blow us up!" He stopped in mid stride and shook the smaller man. "You guys are really getting on my nerves. As soon as Snake has finished with ya man, you're dead meat!"

Weasel was paralysed with horror, at the thought of being on the receiving end of Rhino's bad temper, he had seen these men at work. Croc's deep voice stirred them all out of the tense moment.

"This is the room that Vixen keeps that Rescue guy." He stood a few doors along from where the others had stopped. Weasel looked up at him in surprise, but said nothing.

"Ah, so she wanted a hero, and got herself one, did she?" Snake let out a chuckle, "I wonder how heroic he is now she's got 'im all drugged up."

Weasel's face twitched in anticipation as Croc opened the door and the four of them entered the room.

TBTBTB

(Two days earlier)

"Well, it seems that they only want money." Penny pondered quietly to herself.

After being blown out abruptly by Jeff Tracy, she had done the exact opposite of what he'd ordered her to do. Much to Parker's delight.

FAB 1 shot across the freeways, following the tracking device they had planted on the Heli-jet that assisted Snake and Rhino in the prison breakout. With the amazing speed Brains had built the car to perform, it took them only a short time to arrive at the location in LA.

As Parker pulled to a stop not far from where the signal was transmitting, they heard the familiar sound of Thunderbird Two overhead.

"Oh no, I was hoping to have beaten them here." She told Parker in dismay. "Now they will know that they've been found out, and they'll make a break for it."

Parker made a shuffling noise as he opened the door to let her out of the car. "H'that's not always the way it's done milady." He responded. "Sometimes we would er…I mean they will lay low for a while."

She stood up and looked in the direction she could hear the Thunderbird landing.

"I guess you would know, Parker. And as I have you, that means we have a slight advantage, does it not?"

He nodded and smiled. "That we do, milady." He held out his arm, and she took it, smiling. "Now where do we start looking?"

"Always go down. We start in the lowest part of the building." As they walked arm in arm towards the building that the Heli-jet had landed on, he noticed the underground car park sign. "It looks like that might be the best place for us to find 'em."

"As you wish Parker. Let's see if we can get a device on one of the men. Hopefully they will lead us straight to Scott." Silently she added to herself, "Then Jeff will finally realise I'm ready to be allowed on real missions, not just researching for him all the time."

TBTBTB

"Thunderbird Five to Base" Alan's voice requested attention.

"This is Base, what have you got, Alan?" John answered his brother from the control room on Tracy Island. He was glad not to be trapped up in the sky for once.

"I can't get a fix on the jet. It was fast, sure. But I should have been able to trace it! The whole damn world is going crazy down there. The Navy never even saw it coming!" Alan was frustrated and angry. "It doesn't register on anyone's screens, not the army, air-force, ours…." His voice drifted off in defeat.

John sighed, knowing what his youngest brother was feeling. He tried to reassure him "Brains is working on it. You're doing a great job up there, sprout, so don't you forget that. The jet will fly again, and when it does we'll be ready for it. Just keep your eyes and ears open."

Alan nodded tiredly, "I guess you're right, John. But…do you still…you know…."

"Think Scott was flying it?" John finished for him. Behind him, Virgil walked into the room and paused by the door just out of sight from Alan to listen in. "Yeah bro, I do. Hey, you saw it too. You tell me who else could fly like that?"

Alan almost exploded "How the hell can you accuse Scott of shooting at the god damn World Navy? You know him better than anyone John! This is Scott we're talking about!"

Virgil decided to step in, "Hey, that's enough Alan. Whether John is right or wrong, we still need to find that jet when it flies again."

Alan huffed "I know!"

"We also need to find Scott. But thousands of lives are at stake here, and we have to be careful with our resources." He continued, giving John a quick wink. "If Scott was piloting that jet," he put up his hands to stop Alan as he started to protest. "I said 'if'. If Scott was, then he was not in control of his actions. Remember the syringe Gordon found? Drugs?"

"Okay, okay, I get the picture, guys." Alan grumpily answered. "I just don't like it when you say its Scott. And neither would he."

John nodded his agreement. "Sorry Al, but you know I didn't mean it like that." He was glad Virgil came in to help him out. He could not deal with Alan's outbursts on his own, Virgil and Scott were much more used to dealing with their younger sibling than he was.

"No harm done, bro. I guess I better get back to work then. See you guys later."

"FAB, Alan. Good luck," answered John in relief, smiling his thanks to Virgil.

The screen changed to the portrait of the youngest Tracy.

John turned to face Virgil, a curious expression coming over his face. "So how is Dad getting on with getting the device plans and designs?"

Virgil grinned at him, "Well, put it this way. They 'tried' to refuse to admit the device existed. They then 'tried' to tell him it would never work, and you know what Dad's like when he wants something!"

John returned the grin, knowing that turning Jeff Tracy down was not even in the Tracy dictionary. It never happened. What he wanted, he always got.

Virgil continued, "Well, after a talking down, they have now sent through all the info on this device! Can you believe it! Anyway, Brains and Tin-tin are looking over it to see if they can find a way to crack it. They just have to find the right frequency."

John sat back against the desk in relief. "Thank god! I sure hope they come up with something soon, time is running out. Have you been able to contact Penny yet?"

Virgil frowned for the first time since entering the room. "No. Nothing. I really think Dad put his foot in it this time."

John whole heartily agreed with his brother, "Yeah, he did. But Penny would never ignore us when we really need her help, no matter how mad she is with us." John sighed, "I just hope she's alright."

"You don't think she followed the Heli-jet against Dad's orders do you?" Virgil suggested to John.

"Now you mention it, I wouldn't put it past her. I mean, they turned off the GPS on FAB 1, and for two days now, neither she nor Parker are answering our calls." John stood up abruptly and walked around to the control panel behind the large desk.

"What you thinking?" Virgil followed his blond haired brother.

"Well, you say you never saw them when you were searching for that Snake guy, but did you think to check Thunderbird Two's camera's when you flew into the area?"

"No. Why would we?" Virgil defended himself, "They weren't there, don't forget you came too. The building was empty. God knows how those men got away, and where the hell they went so quickly."

John brought the recordings up on the screen. "Calm down Virg." He paused as he pressed the play button. "Right, lets fast forward it shall we?"

He held his hand on the button, and the scenery flashed in front of the brother's eyes. Then near the end of the tape, they spotted it at the same time.

"Well I'll be damned!" Virgil exclaimed in shock.

"Got yah!" John cheerfully announced. "Told you! Now how do we tell Dad that Penny disobeyed him, and seems to be MIA as well?"

Virgil looked worried, "Don't look at me! You're next in line, it's your job, bro." He flicked his eyes back to the screen that John had paused. "Maybe we shouldn't tell him just yet?"

John looked puzzled by Virgil's statement "Why? You know we're supposed to have contacted her, he is going to ask after her sooner or later!"

"Yeah, but we could stall him! What if Penny's onto something and just can't contact us yet? She's probably closer than we are to Scott right now." Virgil said on the verge of being excited at the prospect of believing what he had just said.

"Oh, and how did you come to that conclusion, Sherlock?" John asked him, thinking his brother had finally cracked under the pressure.

"Think about it! If Penny were in trouble, she would have got a message to us! She always does! Parker must be with her, and they may even have 'dumped' FAB 1. I mean, it's not a great car for spying and creeping around in is it?"

John laughed at the thought "Yeah, I guess you have a valid point there." He looked hard at Virgil, weighing the possibilities in his mind. "Okay, we will keep trying to contact them, but tell Dad nothing. For now, but it's on your head, Virg."

"That's fine with me. Just you wait, I know I'm right!" He turned and went back out to see how Brains was getting on with the code for the Jet.

TBTBTB

Pheonix woke up to a loud noise coming from down the corridor.

It sounded like people arguing in the distance, it reminded him of another time and place. He sat up wondering why he was once again in bed, and how he got there.

Deciding he might as well get up and see what all the yelling was about, he put on a shirt which was hanging over the back of a chair. As he slid it on he noticed the small pin pricks covering his arm. He paused to examine them.

Why did he need so much medication? Wolf had told him some story about a childhood illness, but it was hardly believable. Apart from the severe headaches he was experiencing, there was no proof that he was ill.

He was smarter than that. If he were that ill, he would not be allowed to fly.

The noise outside had stopped, the silence grew and pressed on Pheonix's mind as his thoughts continued to process what he had been told about his 'abduction and integration' by International Rescue.

Just then his door opened and Wolf appeared, quickly shutting the door behind him. He looked out of breath.

"What's going on?" Pheonix asked his elder brother in concern, taking in the slightly peeved expression on his face.

Wolf ignored him and went straight to a cupboard on the other side of the room. He unlocked it and pulled out a small metal box, which was also locked.

Pheonix followed his movements with his eyes, suspicion growing as his brother behaved so strangely. "Wolf, tell me what's going on!" He tried again. "I'm coming with you..."

Wolf turned to look at him, as if he had forgotten he was there. "Nix! Nothing, Bruv, just getting some stuff for Foxy." He glanced at the door. "We have some…visitors. You need to stay out of the way for a while, bruv, just till they've gone."

Pheonix froze at the thought of who the visitors might be, knowing he was being lied to again.

"It's International Rescue, isn't it!" He sat down on the bed heavily, "They found us. You said we were safe here Wolf. How did they find us?"

Wolf closed his eyes, and whispered under his breath "I don't have time for this!" Looking over at the dark haired man he tried to reassure him "Nix, I'm not saying who is here. You just stay out of the way. Okay? No matter what happens."

"Where shall I go?" Not knowing the area as he'd only been to the hangar and the control room, he had been moved a couple of times to stay in different rooms. Vixen had said it was for security reasons.

Wolf thought about it. Then smiled. "How about the jet? You get her ready for another flight, bruv."

Pheonix smiled as he thought about flying, "Sure, okay Wolf. But any trouble, and I mean it, you call me." He was serious. They would not take him again, he was a free man.

The young dark haired man smiled at him and then took off jogging lightly to the Hangar where the black jet waited for him. He began to put on his flight suit, which had been especially designed to keep his body functioning whilst he battled with the strain of the G-force, so he didn't pass out.

He slid down into the seat and began to strap himself in, before he began a pre-flight check on his own.

Wolf held his breath till he was out of sight, then gripping the precious metal box tightly, he made his way back to the radio room.


	9. Chapter 9

**Okay, sorry for the long delay, but had problems loading this onto the site!!**

**Enjoy.**

**Chapter 9**

Two figures cautiously approached the tunnel entrance.

The new tarmac surface proved to them that the old underground train tunnels were not as abandoned as the signs had indicated.

"Well this is interesting." A well-spoken voice softly whispered to her older companion.

"H'indeed Milady!" He turned to look at her, "Shall we contact Mr Tracy now?" he asked hopefully. It had been two days since they had last had any contact with the Tracy family. And one day since ditching FAB 1, turning off her GPS and using other means of transport to follow Snake and his gang.

She shook her head, "No! All we have so far is a tunnel, our quarry have gone to ground, and we shall continue to follow them until we have something worth bothering Jeff with." Smiling to Parker she added "Besides, he deserves our silence for speaking to me in that manner. Lets just take a closer look, if we can confirm whether Scott is here or not, then that is worth telling him about!"

Parker nodded, though he did not understand the way female minds worked, he was not happy about just the two of them following the gang into the dark tunnel, without the usual back up he had grown accustomed to having from the Tracy brothers.

"Shall we go in then, Mi-lady?"

"Yes, lets. We won't get far waiting out here. Lead the way Parker!"

He sighed and started to make his way into the tunnel with Penny following him close behind. As the light faded, Parker switched on his torch, and cringed at the sound of the high-heeled shoes as it echoed around them.

Tip.

Tap.

Tip.

Tap.

"Mi-lady" He stopped walking and turned to face her. "Do you want to alert H'our presence to the criminals?"

She frowned at him, "Of course not! We must be undetected, you are not to let them know we are here Parker." She looked at the torch, "Do you think we should switch off your torch?" She whispered to him.

He gave a small smile, "No mi-lady, but I do think you should do something about your shoes, anyone at the other end will be waiting for us."

She looked puzzled, "My shoes? What, are they the wrong ones? Should I have worn my Pradas?"

Parker couldn't help but smirk, but answered seriously. "No mi-lady, they are a perfect choice for your attire, but to sneak into dangerous territory, well, we have to be quieter."

"Oh!" She said, then realised what he was talking about and blushed. "Should I remove them?"

"How 'bout I adapt them for you?" He held out his hand and she took them off, giving them to him.

"What are you going to do?" She asked in interest, watching him as he held one and then suddenly smacked the heel down hard on the floor, snapping it cleanly off, She gave a small gasp of dismay. "Parker! They were my favourite shoes! How could you?"

As he handed them back he replied "All in the line of duty, Mi-lady. It is a sacrifice worth making." Then, as she placed her feet back inside the new 'sandals' he began to go deeper into the tunnel. This time in silence.

TBTBTB

Croc opened the door to the room which he believed Scott was being kept in. Pushing it wide open, Snake strode through the door with revenge glinting in his eyes, the others a step behind him.

He looked around in surprise.

Rhino gasped as he took in the sight that greeted his vision. Even Croc was shocked at the amount of information displayed in the room. The walls were covered in pictures and diagrams of International Rescue. From their mysterious, advanced machines, to various newspaper cuttings of rescues performed by them. On the desk was a pile of eyewitness accounts. Most of the pictures posted were of Scott.

His blue uniform was hung up on a filing cabinet.

"Well looks like someone has got a bit of an obsession going on here." Snake turned to face Weasel and pointed his finger at the sly man, jabbing him hard in the chest.

"This stuff yours? Or Vixen's?" Motioning the room with his other hand.

Weasel swallowed, "I …. Its ….." He stuttered to answer, when suddenly the alarm went off, its ringing making them all jump.

"What the hell?" Swore Croc, "That's the intruder alarm!"

"Shit, better not be the cops!" Rhino growled, he shook Weasel "You set us up man? Us coming in here set the bloody alarm off, didn't it!"

"NO! No, I didn't set anyone up! We have to get to the Control room, now!"

Snake roughly grabbed Weasel by the front of his coat and pulled him up so he was lifted off the ground, so their faces were only inches apart.

"If this is one of your little tricks, I will skin you alive." He spoke quietly, but his voice sent chills down Weasel,s spine. Weasel gasped and croaked, "It's not! Honest!"

Snake dropped him to the floor, "Lead the way then" Rhino grabbed his arm, pulled him up and made Weasel lead them to the main Control Room. The alarm still blared loudly, piercing everyone's ears with it's high pitch ringing.

TBTBTB

Vixen was deep in discussion with the client in her private Radio Room. Wolf stood by her side as the man on the screen demanded to know how well the drug was working on Pheonix. He was more than pleased with the test flight, but when Vixen mentioned that they wanted to be a bit more persuasive and were thinking of doubling the drugs dosage, he became annoyed. Vixen wanted to know how far the General wanted to push Pheonix.

"General Bron, 'zhere is no need to worry! Pheonix is completely in our control. The next flight will take place on time with no problems." Vixen tried to calm him down. "Wolf has his total trust. Don't you?"

Wolf looked the General in the eyes and answered, "Yes I do. We are like brothers now. Pheonix hates International Rescue, and believes that they are the ones who abducted him, not the other way around."

General Bron frowned as he considered what they had said. "Then why do you want to double the dose?"

Vixen and Wolf glanced quickly at each other. "Just to be sure. After ze first flight he was confused after he had landed. Nothing to worry about, we want him on our side for good."

The grey haired man nodded his agreement. "Alright then, do as you will. But before you sign off, I have an old friend who wants a few favours from you."

Vixen narrowed her eyes. "Who? And what are ze favours?"

She was not interested in making friends. All she wanted was money, and power.

The General smiled, "His name is Belah Gaat. He heard of your new pilot and wanted proof of it. Do you have any proof that he is who you claim him to be?"

Wolf frowned, wondering where this was leading. Vixen looked cross, but turned to wolf. "Bring me Phoenix's watch. But don't take it out the box."

"Okay." And he left the room in a hurry.

"Do you doubt me, General?" she asked the older man once the door was closed again. She studied his face and waited for his answer.

"My dear, you are far too valuable to me not to doubt you. But it is not me that wants proof, but this man here." The screen pulled back and a bald headed man came into view.

"Foxy Lady" his voice was gruff with a slight accent and he gave a mocking bow, "Your reputation precedes you. If you have the man I have been told you do, then we have a lot to talk about." His large bushy eyebrows moved up and down as he spoke.

"He's not for sale." Was her instant answer.

He laughed at her quick response. "And I don't want to buy. Just proof that it is he. And maybe the token that is about to appear."

"You want his watch? For what purpose?"

"Revenge. Revenge against International Rescue, for foiling my plans too many times. You do realise that they will find you? It is only a matter of time. But I can lead them away on a wild goose chase, and finally be rid of them for good!"

General Bron nodded his agreement "They will spoil everything if they catch you up. Give the Master Gaat anything he wants. I will not put my new plane or its pilot in jeopardy."

Vixen was about to answer when Wolf came back in, holding a small metal box.

"Ah, so you know about the communicator placed in the watch." The Hood said approvingly, "Open the box, just so I can see it, then you can shut it away again before you send it to me."

"Do it." Vixen ordered Wolf, who looked strangely at the bald man on the screen.

He keyed in the code and the box opened, revealing the beautifully crafted watch of Thunderbird One's pilot.

The Hood caught his breath in joy. "Yes! You do have him! I want that sent to me now!" He had a crazed look upon his face and his hands were clenched in fists and he raised them above his head. "General Bron, I want your pilot to bring me the box himself, so I may look upon the face that will bring down International Rescue!"

"No!" Wolf spoke out loudly, everyone turned to face him in surprise. "Have you met him before?" He asked, his mind quickly assessing the situation.

"In fact I have, yes."

Wolf did not like this new player, nor did Vixen. "Then your meeting with him could ruin our plans. I will 'ave Croc fly it to you shortly. or you can pick it up yourself. This meeting is over, General."

Vixen switched off the screen before either of them could answer. She turned to face Wolf for an explanation.

"Nix is awake. I sent him to get the jet ready for the next flight." Wolf informed her quickly. "He must have heard our voices, I told him we had visitors, it was the only thing I could come up with. I think he wanted to come back here with me."

She was about to answer when the alarm went off.

BBBBRRRIIINNNNGGGG!!!

"Oh shit, now what?" Wolf swore out loud.

"Lets get to ze control room and find out!"

Leaving the metal box open on the table, he and Vixen ran out the room to find out who had set off the alarm.

TBTBTB

Pheonix was sitting inside the jet, flicking the switches and doing his pre-flight checks. He could do it without even thinking about it. Flying was second nature to him, when he flew, both he and the jet became one.

He was engrossed once again in his thoughts that he never saw the two figures creep out of the tunnel exit, and make their way silently towards the boarding stairs of the jet.

Parker and Penny had seen him come through the door in his flight suit and climb straight into the jet as if he owned it. He didn't look as if he was trying to escape. They stared at each other in shock. Neither of them had expected Scott to be here of his own will.

They decided to play it safe.

They began to make their way over to the jet, and quietly climbed the stairs to the platform. Parker reached the top, Pheonix looked up and stared at him in surprise. "Who are you?" He asked, he frowned as a blond haired woman appeared behind Parker, putting her hand gently on the older mans shoulder to stop him from answering.

Pheonix looked at her, he thought he may have seen her before, but could not place it. That made him worried. Wolf said they had visitors, though these two people did not seem to be 'International Rescue' type figures. He wondered if he knew them, then he remembered that Wolf did not actually say who the visitors were.

Maybe he had just jumped to conclusions.

"Well?" He asked again, his voice more in control as he gathered his thoughts. Not seeing them as a threat.

Penny cleared her throat, not trusting herself to speak as she looked into the blue eyes and didn't see the Scott Tracy she knew.

"My name is Penelope. This is Parker." She smiled at him. "You are the pilot of this wonderful plane?" She asked him carefully.

He smiled "Yes, she's a jet. Hypersonic. The only one of her kind."

Their eyes widened in amazement.

Scott nodded his head and beamed at them, he felt at ease in their presence, which in the back of his mind nagged him. He had only just met them, but they felt like old friends.

Parker was just as mystified. "Where did you learn to fly it?" He asked.

Pheonix frowned as he answered, "I've only flown her once so far. I'm about to take my second flight shortly."

Penny glanced at Parker who nodded back at her, they had both come to the same conclusion. Scott was under the influence of someone, or something. They were going to have to take him out and get him back to Tracy Island where he belonged, before he flew again, and before anyone realised they were even in the hangar.

"Would you show me the um… engine? I've always wanted to see how they work." Pheonix looked taken back, but stood up and climbed out the cockpit onto the platform. He followed them down the stairs and said, "Did Vixen tell you I was here?"

Parker answered quickly "Yes. We wanted a tour of the place, so we were told that you could give us one."

Pheonix started, but they never noticed. He knew then that something was wrong. He had only been from his room to the Hangar and back. Even he hadn't had a 'tour' of the place. He thought he would test them out.

"Did you see my brother?" He asked them.

Penny answered carefully. "Which one?" then a quick look in his eyes told her that was the wrong thing to say. "Um…Of course, he said you would tell us all about the amazing plane. Told us you work for International Rescue…."

His face fell at the name, and instantly she knew she had ruined their chance. "Parker!"

Parker swung around to grab Scott, but he was already backing up the stairs and in the cockpit to trigger the alarm. Penny raced after him, but slipped on the bottom step and fell.

"Mi-lady!" Parker called out her name, and turned to catch her. Then the alarm went off as Pheonix pressed the panic button.

BBRRRIINNGG

"Parker, lets get out of here!" They turned and fled out the way they had come.

"Would now be a good time to contact Mr Tracy, Mi-lady?" Parker panted as they ran down the tunnel together.

She pushed her hair away from her face and puffed back "I think now would be the perfect time Parker."

They stopped near the exit and Penny opened her handbag, pulling out her gold eyeliner pen, which had a hidden radio in it.

"Calling International Rescue, this is Penelope calling. Do you copy?"

They waited for what seemed an eternity before Alan's voice floated out at them "This is International Rescue, how can I help you Penny?"

They both heaved a sigh of relieve. "Alan, this is an emergency. I don't have much time so don't interrupt me okay?"

"Sure thing Penny."

"Right, I want you to trace this signal. It will lead you to the hideout of Snake and his gang. Also, we found something that you lost a couple of days ago…"

Alan shouted out anyway, "Scott!"

Penny grimaced, "Hush Alan, someone may be following us. Follow this signal. Just warn Jeff that Scott is not himself, and to hurry!"

"FAB Penny. I've got your location. Thanks …" He gushed out in excitement and disappointment.

"We must go Alan. Good luck and get out here as soon as possible. Penny out."

They heard footsteps running down the tunnel towards them. "I think that we 'ave over stayed h'our welcome Mi-lady!" Parker informed his employer.

"I do believe you are right Parker. Shall we see what they want?"

Parker held out his arm, and she put her arm through his and together they walked calmly back into the tunnel, knowing they would not outrun anyone. Besides, they would be of more help to their friends and to Scott, if they were on the inside.

TBTBTB

(Back on Tracy Island)

"Okay boys, Thunderbirds are GO!" Jeff's reaction was instant; the second Alan's call came through. "John take TB1, go! Virgil and Gordon, off you go boys in TB2."

"YES SIR" They all called, as all of them had already virtually disappeared into the walls. All of them full of renewed hope.

As they took off, Jeff tried to contact Penny. He wanted to apologise for his rudeness, and to thank her personally, but he once again received no answer.

Just then, Alan's portrait began flashing again.

"Go ahead son, what have you got?"

Alan was full of excitement, a huge smile on his face. "Father, I've just noticed, Scott's tracer, it started showing on my screen! Very close to Penny's co-ordinates! He must be trying to escape with Penny's help, and has found a way to let us know he is okay!"

Jeff smiled at his youngest son. "That's great Alan. Keep an eye on it, and keep track of the others as well." He paused and took a deep breath "We don't know what they will find yet, so don't jump to conclusions."

"Yes father." Alan replied, not worried by the graveness of his father. He knew his brothers would be reunited soon.

But what he didn't know was that the reunion might not be quite what they were expecting.

TBTBTB

Any feedback is always welcomed. Good or 'Not So Good'

Hob x


	10. Chapter 10

**Ok, now we're on a roll !!!**

**Thanks to those of you who have reviewed!!! It means a lot.**

**Enjoy...**

**Chapter 10**

Wolf tore into the control room and switched off the alarm. He then brought up the source of the alarm on the internal computers. It came from the cockpit of the jet.

"Nix!" He said out loud, harshly. Picking up the headphones, he contacted the jet's speakers. "Pheonix, why did you set off the alarm?"

Nothing, then a voice answered. "There were some people down here. I didn't think you wanted anyone but me in the hangar."

Vixen walked in and asked, "Where's Weasel?"

Wolf shrugged at her before replying to Pheonix. "Nix, is Weasel down there with you? And what did the people look like?"

"No, I've not seen him. There was a beautiful woman, blond, well dressed, and an old man. They were down here asking strange questions. They ran off down the tunnel when I switched on the alarm. I'm going to follow them now. You'll have to catch me up, bro."

And he cut Wolf off.

Vixen was about to order him to stay put, when the door behind them sprung open and in walked Snake and Rhino, who was pulling Weasel along, and Croc.

"Well hello. Didn't think you would see me so soon did you my dear?" Snake smirked at his ex.

She took a step back in shock. Then recovered quickly, "Snake, how ze hell did you get out? Why didn't you let us know? We could 'ave assisted you." She moved towards him, and he grabbed her in a crushing embrace. "Foxy, nothing will separate us again!" He gleefully looked towards Wolf, who calmly watched them kiss, but inside he was seething with jealousy.

But ever the con artist, he never missed a beat. "Did you bring an old man and a woman here with you?" He asked the group out loud, "Coz if you didn't, we could be in trouble because they're in the hangar right now."

Vixen pulled back. "Our investment! Snake we've got to catch them before they find out…."

"About your little hero?" Snake finished for her. Both Vixen and Wolf looked taken back. "Oh, Croc told me all about your little adventures, babe. Lets go take a look, then we can have a proper little reunion party!" He turned and winked at Rhino and Croc who both gave a small deep chuckle. "Lets go, boys." He was back in charge of the gang. Vixen scowled at Weasel as they left the room.

Snake, Croc, Rhino and Wolf ran back towards the hangar.

When they got there it was empty, the others stopped, but Wolf ran straight past them and carried on down into the tunnel. Rhino swore and took off after him, he hated running, but didn't want to lose track of Wolf.

Nearing the end Wolf saw that Pheonix stood pointing a gun at the two intruders. They made no move to get away, but were standing quietly as if they were waiting for something to happen.

"Hey Wolf. I caught them, they were wandering around the tunnel when I got here. What shall we do with them?" Nix asked.

Penny and Parker waited with interest to see what this young man was going to say.

Wolf stopped next to Pheonix and raised his own gun. "You did well Nix, but next time don't run off alone. When I tell you to do something I expect you to do it! What if it was International Rescue that was here and not some girl and her old man? Huh"

Pheonix shrugged his shoulders and murmured an apology. Parker caught Penny's eye with a puzzled look, which also showed worry for the dark haired Tracy boy.

"Right, you two. You're trespassing on our soil. Had you not seen our machine, I could have let you go, but now you're both going to have to come with us until we can sort something out."

"Of course, young man. We were just wondering if we could have a little chat with, ….Vixen?" Penny asked.

Wolf looked sharply at her when she mentioned Vixen's name. "We'll see. Depends on who sent you."

He stood back and waved them passed him, back towards the hanger. Both he and Pheonix followed them.

Half way down the tunnel they met Rhino and Croc. "Hey, you got 'em then!"

Snake appeared behind them, "Ah, so we are going to have a really good party tonight. With company such as this boys!"

Parker did not like the way they were leering towards Penelope, and instinctively moved closer to her. "It's alright Parker, the boys will be here shortly." She whispered to him.

They were taken and put into the room that contained all the International Rescue information, and locked in.

"You can have some fun in here. Lots to read to stop you both getting bored!" Laughed Croc as he locked the door. Penny sighed, "Why do they always think we can't get out when we want to?"

Parker smirked "Must be our disguise as harmless 'posh' people, Mi-lady!"

They glanced around the room, astonished that anyone could have so much information on the organisation that Jeff had tried so hard to keep secret.

"Well let's make ourselves useful shall we?" Penny suggested, Parker smiled back.

"I'll do the walls shall I, Mi-lady?"

"Yes Parker, I think you should!" And they carefully began to rip up and destroy every piece of paper and diagram they found that had anything to do with International Rescue.

TBTBTB

Wolf held Pheonix back as Croc and Rhino took Penny and Parker out the hanger. Snake watched, as they were lead away, scheming what his next move was going to be.

"Nix, I want you to stay as far away from Snake as you can. He's dangerous. Leave him to Vixen and me. Okay?" He whispered as he maneuvered Pheonix towards the jet.

"He hates International Rescue too, and when you were under their control the two of you crossed paths. He ended up in jail and wasn't too happy about it. So let him cool down before he causes you any trouble," he explained when Pheonix started to object.

Pheonix looked unsure. "We've met? I don't recall, but then I've not seen his face yet, you were in the way. But yeah, I'll keep clear of him. If that's what you want."

Wolf smiled and nodded in relief. "Good. Now get strapped in, it's almost time to launch again. You up to it?"

"Sure. I'll be ready in 5."

Wolf nodded and headed out of the hanger after Snake, who seemed to have missed seeing Pheonix there. Wolf had managed to hide him behind his back when they walked back into the tunnel.

Wolf sighed, and braced himself for trouble that would soon be brewing.

TBTBTB

John flew towards LA in Thunderbird One. His brothers, in Thunderbird Two, were just behind him.

The co-ordinates Alan had given him placed Penny's signal just on the outskirts of the now uninhabited part of LA. Disused train tunnels, warehouses and empty shopping malls. The streets here were deserted.

As he flew lower, he could see that it was a good place to hide, if you didn't want to be found. He wondered if the jet was hidden here as well.

"Thunderbird One to Thunderbird Two, I'm approaching danger zone now." He announced.

"FAB Thunderbird One. ETA 8 minutes." Virgil replied. Gordon sat next to him and fidgeted in his seat. "Calm down Gords. We're almost there!"

"Yeah, I know. God, we have the fastest machines in the world, and they just don't seem to go fast enough!"

Virgil just laughed.

TBTBTB

Wolf and Snake walked back into the Control room together, Vixen and Weasel stopped arguing instantly.

"Don't stop for me. Carry on with what you were saying" Snake sneered at them. The room was tense. Wolf cleared his throat and they all looked at him.

"It's almost time to launch again. The client wanted us to push up the time scale, add some heat to help them part with their money, didn't he Foxy."

She looked at him, but welcomed the diversion. "Yes, 'e did. Is Pheonix ready?"

Wolf moved over to the control panel. "Yes. I'll just check him in for count down."

Snake frowned, "You mean the hero is going to fly that jet?" He didn't think they were able to use him. Croc had told him that the man was incapacitated.

Weasel smirked and told him "The Client is very pleased with his progress. This is very profitable, so you don't want to do anything to ruin this one. The client handed complete control to Foxy. You can ask him yourself if you like."

Snake moved towards him, cracking his knuckles in front of his chest to intimidate the smaller man.

"That's enough of that you two." Vixens voice rang out at them. "Snake, you really need to watch this to believe it."

He moved over to her, putting his arm around her waist, he pulled her close against his side. "Alright babe, show me what the hero can do."

She rested her head against his chest, her ginger hair falling over one of her cheeks.

Wolf turned away from them, a jealous frown upon his face. "Nix, are you set to go, Bruv?"

"Ready and waiting, Wolf." Was the instant reply.

"Okay, counting down now. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, go!"

Pheonix shot down the runway and for the second time, burst out the tunnel into daylight.

"Mach 2, now approaching mach 3, and rising!" Pheonix announced within seconds of leaving the tunnel.

"What!" Demanded Snake, "He must be demented. No way can he be going that fast!"

The others all grinned knowingly at each other. "Actually, he's pushing her a bit more this time, but we got ourselves the best pilot in the world, to fly the one and only hypersonic jet in the world."

"Now you know why we were so engrossed with our 'project', this is bigger and better than anything we've ever done before!" Vixen added smugly.

Wolf looked at his screen as the dot moved rapidly across it. Then he noticed another dot that was also moving fast. And it was coming towards them.

"Nix, I got a new target for you, bruv."

"Okay, switching to stealth now." Pheonix answered.

"Head back home, if you swing her around to your left and come in at about 20,000ft you will see it."

"F..A...Okay"

Wolf glanced at Vixen to see if she noticed.

"When he gets back, we double his next dose," she ordered. Weasel nodded his agreement. Wolf's face remained passive.

"Problems?" Snake wondered aloud to them.

"Nothing to worry about." Wolf answered. "Just when he flies, it seems to effect the drug in his body, makes him confused. Caspian says the pressure from the G force could be changing the way the drug effects his mind."

TBTBTB

"Thunderbird One to base." John radioed in.

"Base here. How are you doing son?" Jeff answered.

"I've arrived at the danger zone. No sign of any life, but it sure looks like a good place to hide. I'm going to fly around to take a quick look before Virgil gets here."

"FAB. Be careful, son. Base out."

John carried on past Penny's last signal location. As he turned back to swing around to see if he missed anything, something made him look to his right.

"What the..!" He gasped in surprise as the jet flew right at him and pulled up over him at the last second. He quickly swung TB1 around to follow, pushing her to full throttle, and then he lost sight of it.

"Damn, she's fast!" John switched on his screen, but the jet was invisible to the radial still. "I hope Brains comes up with that code soon," he prayed to himself.

He slowed TB1 and turned back towards the danger zone, when once again the jet appeared out of nowhere, repeating the same action. This time from the other direction.

"So you want to play cat and mouse do you?" John mused, "Sure, I'll play." And once again, he gave chase. This time he caught the jet up.

"Right, now to tag you!" John spoke to himself. He pressed the trigger and the tracking device fired out towards the jet. John watched in shock as the jet just accelerated away as if it had only been going slow before. He checked his own speed and saw that he was already flying at mach 12.

"Jesus, that's gotta be the fasted jet on the planet!"

"Thunderbird Two to Thunderbird One. Where the hell are you, John?" Virgil's annoyed voice came over the speaker. "We're at the danger zone. We are going in to land now, then we're going inside the tunnels."

"Virgil, wait!" John's desperate voice instantly replied. "I'm following the jet, I'm trying to get a tracker on it… Well, I was till it zoomed out of here!"

"You're what?" Gordon grabbed the radio from Virgil "Just push Thunderbird One faster, you'll catch her up!"

"No. She's faster than anything I've ever seen before." He paused, and saw the jet coming back at him. This time she fired a missile at him.

"Shit!" He swore and accelerated away himself, this time heading back towards the danger zone.

"What's wrong?" Virgil's voice came out urgently. "John, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just great!" He answered sarcastically; he was not the happiest pilot in the world. "Now I'm being fired at…shit, that was close!" He swore as he pushed the controls so Thunderbird One twisted round and spiralled out of the way just before impact.

"God, I feel sick" He moaned, "Guy's, a little help would be nice."

"Where are you?" Virgil asked as he raised TB2 up from the ground and waited for his brother to answer.

John sped through the sky, now pushing mach 20. The jet was still behind him. His alert sounded as yet another missile was launched at him.

"Damn, I can't shake it!" He yelled out in frustration, after trying to dodge it by swinging TB1 to the right and then back again.

"Where are you, John?" came Virgil's not so calm voice through the speaker.

"I'm …. Look to your left!" John shouted as he caught sight of the large green Thunderbird in front of him and only just managed to miss hitting it.

"Sorry!" he gushed, as he flew past them, the missile still on his tail.

"Gordon, fire!" Virgil ordered his younger sibling; after he instinctively ducked out the way as he watched the three objects zoom past his window.

Gordon fired, and another missile entered the fray.

It managed to hit the missile behind John, and he slowed to turn back towards them. "Thanks guys. I owe you." He said in relief. "I am so going back to TB5 when we get home."

"John, can you see the jet anywhere?" Virgil asked his brother, when Gordon interrupted him, "Don't look now, but I think I can see it above you. Have you tried to make contact yet?"

"Are you joking? Make contact? I've been trying not to get blown up!" He shot back in frustration. Gordon smirked at Virgil, knowing how much John hated anything that wasn't a 'smooth flight'.

They flew in the direction John had disappeared only moments ago, only to find themselves nose to nose with the jet themselves.

"Er, John," Gordon radioed "You had better get back here. Because we seem to have gate crashed your party."

"What?" John asked as he came closer to their position. "Oh!" Was the only comment he made when he saw the stand off between the green giant, and the small alien looking black jet hovering just in front of it.

He pulled up and lowered TB1 just behind the jet, so it was sandwiched in between them.

"Now what?" asked Gordon. "Stalemate?"

Virgil shook his head, "Nah, that little beauty could take us both on and survive, let me try talking." He switched another button on the control panel. "This is Thunderbird 2 calling …" Virgil paused and looked over at Gordon questioningly, "black jet pilot. Do you copy?" Gordon put a hand over his mouth to stop the giggle from emerging, he could still see the comical side. Virgil glared at him to keep silent.

"Black jet pilot, please answer." He repeated. They held their breath as they waited for a reply.

"This is Pheonix. You are not welcome here. Leave or I will shoot you down." The voice was serious.

"Thunderbird Two to Pheonix. We mean you no harm. Will you land and talk with us?"

Silence.

"Thunderbird Two to Pheonix. Will you stand down?" Virgil tried again.

"International Rescue Crafts, you will land and wait for further orders. Any wrong move and I will destroy you." The voice answered firmly.

Gordon and Virgil looked at each before signalling John. "What do you think?" Asked Virgil.

"Lets do it. That was definitely Scott's voice, though he sounded different. If you know what I mean"

"Yeah I do. Okay. I'll just report in with Dad. See you on the ground. Thunderbird Two out."

They both lowered their machines slowly to the ground and waited. The black jet hovered above them, and then suddenly it took off into the distance.

"Damn, that's fast!" Gordon exclaimed. "Now what?"

"Now we get out and see where Penny has got too." John's voice came over the speaker. "Lets go."

"FAB" answered Gordon and Virgil together.

TBTBTB

In the control room inside the abandoned train tunnel, Wolf watched in disgust as Snake decided to play his card. He had one of his hands wrapped around Vixens throat, holding her tight against his broad chest. Her eyes were wide as she sort out help from either Weasel or Wolf. But neither of them moved, they were close, but Snake's hand on her neck was closer.

"What are you doing Snake?" Wolf demanded, "Do you want to ruin the whole operation?"

Snake swung his gaze from the main screen to Wolf's young face. "Lets just say I made a pact with the devil. And I'm pulling my side of the bargain."

Weasel frowned. "Who with?"

"That would be for me to know, and maybe you will find out. But he's on his way. I sent Croc to pick him up." He turned to talk to Wolf again. "Tell the hero to stand down."

"What!" Cried Wolf, "He'll get rid of them any minute now!"

"So. The devil will give me a good price for them and their machines. I was just going to give him the hero, but seeing on how things are. I changed my mind." He lifted Vixen slightly off the floor, she grabbed hold of his arm with both her hands to try to take the pressure off her throat. Wolf stood up, and Weasel cowered lower.

"Get your hands off her!" Wolf made forward, angrily.

"Do as I say Wolf! Tell the hero to get them to land. Then tell him to blow up whatever it was you wanted him to destroy for the client. DO IT!" He growled.

Reluctantly Wolf sat down in his seat and spoke to Pheonix. "Change of plan, bruv. Don't ask why, but just trust me okay?"

"Sure, I nearly had him then! I've got two of them here now Wolf! They're not going to get me, never again!"

"Nix, calm down. Change of plan. DO NOT DESTROY THEM!"

"What!" Pheonix's shocked voice answered back "Why not?"

"I'll explain later." He glanced at Snake and caught Vixen's eye before continuing "Foxy has a plan, just get them to land."

"FAB control. I'll see what I can do."

Vixen and Wolf heaved a sigh of relief as Snake released his hold on her. "There, that weren't too hard now was it? Foxy, you take over Wolf's place." He pushed her roughly towards the younger man, who caught her in his arms.

"Wolf, you and me and Rhino are going to pay our guests a visit."

Closing his eyes for a second, Wolf wondered how they were going to get out of this alive. When Snake no longer needed them, they would be dead.

TBTBTB

Okay, so are people still following this?!?! Or have I managed to confuse just about everyone with all the different characters and their motives...???

Hob x


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The black jet sped away from its confrontation with the two Thunderbird machines. Its pilot hyped from the encounter, and now pumped up to take his anger out on something.

"Pheonix, after firing at the target, come straight back to base. Understood?" Weasel ordered the dark haired man via the radio.

"FAB, control. Still in stealth mode. Mission will be complete in three minutes. Pheonix out," came back a very professional voice.

"Okay Pheonix. Control over and out." Weasel replied shutting off the link, looking to Vixen with worry etched on his face. "We're going to have a lot of problems with Snake here now."

She nodded her agreement, silently rubbing her sore throat from where Snake had held her. "We need to contact Caspian and see what damage could be done if Snake really starts to mess with Phoenix's head." She paused, "And find out who Snake is working for," she ordered hoarsely before leaving the room.

Weasel watched Phoenix's progress for a few seconds before switching on the News channel to see how long it would be before the media went mad with their reports about the Statue of Liberty being destroyed by the 'new terrorists'.

As he predicted, with in seconds of the statue being targeted, pictures were shown of the jet as it made its way towards the statue, and blowing it up, then disappearing all in about 4 seconds.

That lad really was some amazing pilot, pondered Weasel: no wonder the client wanted to keep hold of him. His thoughts turned to Vixen. She was always on the lookout for a suitable partner, he wondered if she had her sights on Pheonix. Wolf would soon outlive his usefulness, but while she needed him, she would 'see' to his needs.

Pheonix was valuable to her, not just because of his skills as a pilot, but with his knowledge of International Rescue, the possibilities were endless. He would give them so much power, if only they could get him completely in their control, without Wolf. He let a smile escape as he thought of the wealth there would be for him and Vixen, without Wolf and the others.

Not that it would matter much at this moment, once Snake got his hands on the lad, thought Weasel grimly, a scowl replacing the smile.

His fingers flew across the control panel as he set about researching his contacts to see who had set Snake up with a rescue from Alcatraz, and given him enough resources to want to go against them and their present client.

He would do his best to protect their investment.

TBTBTB

As Pheonix was nearing the tunnel, he switched off the stealth, and slowed as he descended towards the ground.

"Pheonix to base, approaching now." He informed Weasel.

"Clear to land Pheonix. Stay put for Wolf when you've landed."

"FAB" He answered instantly, without even noticing he was saying it.

He spotted the tunnel entrance, and as he touched down and applied the brakes and parachutes to slow and stop the jet. Entering the darkness of the tunnel, he had a dizzy spell and his vision went fuzzy for a second, before returning to him. He shook his head to clear it as he turned the jet around. The sprinklers came on to cool the jet and he started to do the after flight checks, when once again he noticed his hands were starting to shake.

"Damn it" He murmured softly.

Closing his eyes to try and get a hold of himself, his mind wandered back to the chase with Thunderbird One, with a sudden realization that he was very familiar with the sleek plane. Suddenly he felt as if his breath would not leave his lungs and a heavy feeling of regret and worry filled him.

Why did he miss the shot? What was he feeling so strongly about?

He wasn't sure.

But then he looked down at the controls in his hypersonic jet, and smiled at the way she moved with him. This was his jet. Not that piece of International Rescue junk, he told himself fiercely. He reflected on the way he accelerated away from the Thunderbird, as if it was just a walk in the park.

He imagined the other pilot's shocked face and enjoyed the moment before his head began to ache. "Not again!" he murmured to himself, bringing his hands quickly to his head, not wanting another blackout. He began taking deep breaths as he tried to keep the memories that began to stir and flashes of other Thunderbirds darting about in his head, and blend in with his new personality.

TBTBTB

John had informed Jeff about what they were planning to do. Jeff had given them his permission, though reluctantly, knowing they had no other choice. The boys then set off in two separate ways towards the tunnel.

Virgil and John went straight into the tunnel, noting the new tarmac, and the sheer size of the place as they walked inside. Gordon waited for ten minutes before following them, keeping out of sight. He reported to Alan at regular intervals to keep base informed of their position.

They were half way down the tunnel when three of the men who had been involved in the Security Van attack greeted his older brothers in a not so friendly fashion, quickly removing their weapons.

Virgil recognised them instantly, and whispered the fact to John who nodded, knowing they were very close to finding their eldest brother.

"Well, if it ain't the boys in blue, come to disturb us again….."Snake started to say before pausing to look at both Virgil and John in the eyes with a deep intense glare. Virgil stared right back, with a confident, passive look on his face, his eyes pausing briefly on the image of the snake tattooed across his antagonist's face.

The thought 'snake man' crossed his mind, and he almost smiled as he remembered Scott's description of the man. Inside he just wanted to push this man up against the wall and demand to be given his older brother back.

John realized Scott had been telling them the truth about the creepy feeling he'd had when this man jumped him. John trained his features to remain steady, and glared back at the large man who now held them captive, his blue eyes cold.

"…And maybe you want to join us as well?" Snake finished with a sneer, and grinned at his companions.

The only reaction he got from both of them was a slight widening of the eyes, as realisation dawned on them of whom he spoke.

"Bring them." He ordered Wolf and Rhino.

Snake about-turned and led the way out of the tunnel. Virgil had given Wolf a hard look when they caught each other's eyes, and Wolf quietly sucked in his breath. He recognised the look and if he was with anyone other than Snake, he would have run out the tunnel to hide from Scott's protective brother. He didn't think the blond looked too much trouble. But he avoided his gaze anyway.

It was then they heard the rumbling sound, getting closer.

"Damn, its Pheonix!" Shouted Wolf suddenly, "Get off the runway!" He dove for cover, the others all copied his actions. And only just in time as the roaring filled the tunnel and the heat of the jet singed their clothes as it passed them by.

Carefully, and breathing heavily, they got up from the ground.

Snake just scowled and carried on towards the hanger.

"If he does that again, I'll cut his liver out," growled Rhino to Snake, who just grunted in response.

Rhino pushed John hard in the back to make him move after Snake, and John stumbled into Virgil. They turned to face Rhino, standing shoulder to shoulder, but found that Rhino had his gun pointed at them. "Move!" he snarled at the brothers.

Virgil caught John's eye and raised his brow as if to ask what they should do. John smiled grimly, and gave a slight shake of his head.

Not yet, was the silent message.

Unseen by the group, as they turned, Virgil pressed one of the buttons on his watch communicator, so it was a one-way frequency. Now Alan in Thunderbird Five could hear everything that was happening, and be able to report it back to Gordon, who, unbeknownst to Snake and his gang, was following them from a safe distance.

TBTBTB

Vixen headed to her private radio room, and went straight to the medical cabinet. She pulled out the painkillers and swallowed some with ice-cold water, which soothed her sore throat from the pressure Snake had applied.

She turned to the blank screen of the monitor.

Her eyes narrowed as she tried to work out who had set her up. Her vision drifted to the desk and she caught sight of the abandoned watch they had taken from Scott when they first abducted him. It was still in the metal box, but Wolf had forgotten to shut the lid.

Swearing in French, she grabbed it, and shut it away before placing the box into her pocket. No wonder International Rescue had found them. She swore again, and contacted Weasel to let him know how they'd been found.

Then she opened a channel to General Bron. Taking a deep breath and composing her features, she began to inform him of the resent developments.

TBTBTB

As the men walked into the hanger, Wolf wondered what state Pheonix would be in this time. He walked past Snake, who stopped to admire the steaming craft, leaving their captives to Rhino.

"Why don't you take these guys to Vixen." Wolf suggested as he passed the larger man, on his way over to the steps up to the platform.

Snake grinned and turned to wink at Rhino, who nodded back, his eyes gleaming with the promise of excitement. "Nah, I'm gonna greet the Hero. It's 'bout time I introduced myself."

Wolf stopped in mid-stride and turned to face him. "Stay away from him, Snake." He warned.

Virgil and John glanced in confusion at each other, not sure why there was a confrontation between the two men.

"Why? You afraid I might hurt your new playmate? Or are you trying to keep me from becoming friends with the hero?" Snake answered as he moved towards the platform.

Wolf backed up a couple of steps, and pulled out his gun and pointed it at Snakes chest. "I mean it Snake. Stay away from Nix, if you know what's good for you. You're not getting your hands on him!"

Snake's reaction was to laugh. He was surprised the young, blond, smooth talking con man even had it in him to stand up to him. He had to admit he was impressed.

Rhino stood behind the Tracy brothers, his own gun trained on them. They stayed and watched, not quite sure what the men were talking about. But it was obvious that a stand off was in motion.

John frowned, could they be talking about Scott?

Snake's dark eyes bored deep into Wolfs as he slowly climbed the steps towards him. "Do you really think I'm going to let you get away with this disobedience, Wolf?" He whispered, as he got closer to the young man, so Wolf's gun was touching his torso.

Wolf gulped, and blinked as he looked down at the gun. That was his biggest mistake. Snake grabbed Wolf by his elbow and twisted his own body as he yanked the blond forward and swung him into the bars, hard, knocking the breath out of him. The knife appeared out of no-where and he leant on the smaller man, pressing the metal edge of the blade against Wolf's throat.

"See? Now you're gonna get hurt" he whispered in Wolf's ear. Wolf closed his eyes in fear. Suddenly he gasped out in pain as Snake slammed a fist in the side of his abdomen, and then threw him down the steps onto the rough, wet tarmac.

He rolled on his side, arms wrapped around his middle, trying to control the pain. As blood seeped down his face from where he had cut his forehead when he landed, he looked up and saw Snake press the button to open the cockpit door.

Dismay filled him, thinking that he had failed both Vixen and Nix. Now he would finally see what Snake had in store for the young man he had began to feel had became his younger brother.

TBTBTB

"Well, that's the last of it, Mi-lady" Parker told Penelope.

She looked over at him and smiled. "Yes, well let's see where the boys have got to, shall we?"

Parker smiled back at her, "Shall I get the door, Mi-lady?"

"Please do Parker" She replied. They had been in this room long enough. Time for a bit of action, she thought.

TBTBTB

Gordon carefully made his way down the dark tunnel. He had just got inside when he heard the sound of a heli-jet approach from out side.

Swearing at the thought of more unexpected company, Gordon found an old emergency exit door and cut his way in to hide from the newcomers. Once inside he reported in with base.

"Agent 4 to base. Come in please." Gordon spoke quietly into his communicator. The blue screen lit-up as Jeff's face appeared on the mini screen.

"What have you got?" was the instant question. A sure sign that his father was worried. Gordon grinned at him.

"Well I'm in the tunnel, and I've got some more company, just arrived in a heli-jet. So I'm hanging back till they pass. Virgil and John have been caught as planned. No sign of any other agents yet, Father," he reported sincerely.

Jeff frowned. "FAB, Son. Be careful. Report in before you go any deeper. Alan's having a bit of trouble with Agent 3's reception. Base out."

The light went out as Jeff's face disappeared, leaving Gordon in darkness. But that only made his other senses stronger.

He heard voices from outside the door. People were approaching, most likely the new players that had just arrived. He peered out the hole in the door, and sure enough he saw them pass. The lantern held high by one of the people showed the faces of the people as they walked passed, unaware that he was there.

He gasped in shock at one face he knew, and had hoped never to see again.

The Hood.

"What's he doing here?" He whispered in dismay to himself. Then "Oh shit!" In realisation. Switching on the watch he spoke to his dad once more. "Sir, we have a problem……"

TBTBTB

To Be Continued ...

So what do you guys think ???

( my thanks to Anon, Bluegrass, Jendara, and Sam1 for their continued support, and reviews)


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"Sir, we have a problem." Gordon's voice was received on Tracy Island.

"Go ahead, Agent 4. What's wrong?" Jeff responded.

"You won't like it sir. You won't believe who I just saw walk past."

"Well don't keep it to yourself!" came Alan's impatient voice, he had been listening in as well.

"The Hood." was Gordon's simple answer. He was greeted by silence. "Well? What should I do?"

Jeff cleared his voice, before giving his son new orders. "Stay where you are. Don't do anything."

Gordon was not expecting that at all. In a raised, but still whispered voice he argued back. "No can do, Father. The Hood is here. They will need my help. I'm going in."

Jeff instantly ordered him to remain where he was, and explained why. "Listen, son. There is nothing you can do. Just wait, the boys will let us know when they need your help. Alan is keeping an ear on them. They are more likely to need you safe out there, instead of you getting caught too. Have a bit of patience. Trust me."

Gordon huffed, but discipline ran in his Tracy blood. "Okay, father. I'll wait. But if anything goes wrong, it'll be on your head." angerily, he then cut off communications.

Going back to the door, he peered out: I'll give them half an hour, he thought. Then I'm going in, no matter what.

TBTBTB

The only sound in the hanger was the click, and then a hiss of the cockpit door slowly opening.

Virgil and John waited with bated breath to see who was inside, Wolf held his, not knowing, but having some idea of what condition Pheonix would be in. Knowing Pheonix had experienced more G's during this flight, he wondered how much effect it would have on the drug-induced man.

They were all about to find out, though only Snake had a clear view of the pilot. He stood there for a moment, observing the man.

His dark hair was damp with sweat; Pheonix raised his head when he felt the cool air hit his hot face. Dazed blue eyes opened, and looked surprised when he turned his head and took in the features of the large man standing next to him, he had been expecting Wolf to be there.

Before he even had time to take a breath, a massive fist reached in and grabbed the front of his flight suit, pulling him roughly out of the seat and on to the platform.

Snake grinned maliciously at the man he felt was responsible for his imprisonment. He knew he could have a lot of fun at the hero's expense, and make everyone else here suffer for crossing him as well.

Pheonix stared in shock at the tattoo on the man's face. An image of another place flashed in his mind, and he frowned and blinked, his mind still too slow to react. He closed his eyes and gave a small gasp as a sharp pain crashed through his head.

Snake saw the pain flash across the young man's face and looked down at a very concerned Wolf, who was still on the floor, but had pushed himself to a sitting position.

Wolf could see that Pheonix was still not responsive, he had been like that last time. He held his breath as he waited for the outburst he knew was going to come.

John clenched his fists. He heard Virgil give a small gasp of either dismay or joy when he saw it was Scott. The sight of Scott being hauled out of the jet like a rag doll, and held in front of Snake, his arms hanging loosely at his side, was almost too much for the brothers to bear. He felt, rather than saw, Virgil start to move forward, but grabbed his brother's arm and held him back. They caught each other's faces briefly. Not yet, was the silent agreement.

Snake pulled Scott closer and spoke softly in his ear "Well Hero, we meet again. How well do you know your friends? How well do you know yourself?"

Scott blinked in confusion, the pain subsided as he listened to the words. "What do you mean?" he quietly asked back. Feeling returned to his body and instantly he brought his arms up and held onto Snakes wrist, which was tightly attached to the front of his suit. "Who are you?"

Snake sneered at him, "I'm your best mate, Hero." He answered loudly, Scott looked sharply at him, his voice had triggered yet another memory.

"And I'm your worst nightmare!"

Then before Scott could react, Snake threw him down the steps just as he had with Wolf. Unprepared, Scott rolled painfully down the steps and crashed into Wolf at the bottom.

Groaning, he looked up saw Snake laughing out loud, and then a new voice echoed around the hanger, accompanied by a singular clapping of hands.

"Bravo, bravo. I would love to stay and watch the show, but I have pressing matters with Vixen. I will leave these guests for you to entertain, Snake!"

Virgil and John had swung around at the sound of the Hood. They both jumped in surprise. John briefly wondered where Gordon was. Had he been caught? There was no sign of the ginger haired brother, and John sighed in relief.

The Hood walked out of the dark tunnel and made his way over to where Wolf and Scott were attempting to sit up and untangle themselves from each other.

Croc followed him. Snake descended the platform slowly, stopping half way down, waiting to see what his benefactor would do.

Wolf turned, helping Pheonix to stand and they both looked at the Hood standing before them. The Hood stared at Wolf, his eyes turning red for a moment as he bore into the other man's mind. Wolf suddenly screamed in agony, dropping to his knees, his hands pressed in on his temples to try to stop the pain.

Pheonix stared worriedly at his older brother, then he swung around to face the Hood. "Stop it!" he shouted at the man, and then he made to grab him, to knock his concentration. Not that it did any good, the Hood simply changed his target to him instead. "As you wish, young Tracy heir." He said, smiling. "Looks like you have gained yourself another brother. Interesting."

Wolf panted and looked over at Pheonix, his own face pale and his nose still bleeding from the pressure Hood had forced upon him. Pheonix refused to cry out, but was curled on his knees, his head down on the ground. Wolf tried to comfort him, and looked angrily at the Hood and shouted at him "Stop that! Who the hell are you really? What do you want with us?"

The Hood's eyes stopped glowing, and he considered the young blond haired man, who had been insolent to him on the vid-phone. "You know who I am, as does he," he said, motioning Scott with one hand. "I have wasted enough time here." And with that he dismissed them all, and left the hanger with a quick sideways glance at John and Virgil. He winked at them as he passed. It took all their resolve not to jump at him there and then.

A signal from Snake, and Croc hoisted Wolf roughly back up from the ground and dragged him towards Virgil and John, who had been pushed closer to the small group by Rhino, his gun still in their backs.

Virgil prayed his brother would look at them and recognise who they were. Scott had not seen either Virgil or John yet.

The movement of Wolf leaving his side made Pheonix look up and as his eyes came back into focus, he saw a lot of legs in front of him. It was then he recognised the familiar blue boots of the International Rescue uniform, and the two colours of the top of them made his heart jump, but he was not sure why. Slowly he let his vision follow the uniforms up until his eyes fell upon the faces of the men standing in front of him.

Looking from one face to the other, he saw hope registered on both faces. A few memories surfaced, but he didn't get a chance for them to set in as he too was pulled up from the floor and shoved forward to his brother, Wolf.

He winced as he was moved. But he stood as straight as he could. Snake turned his face towards him and began to tell him a story.

"You belonged to International Rescue not so long ago. Did you know that?" Snake began, pointing to Virgil and John. Wolf started to protest, but Croc twisted his arm behind his back and clamped a hand over his mouth. Snake turned to face his old team member, and shook his head slowly at him, no. Wolf quieted down.

"I've waited a long time to shut him up!" Croc growled at Snake, who scowled at him in return, before continuing his story for Pheonix. "You helped them take me out. I was left to rot in prison with Rhino here. You know what, Hero? We were set up, you and I."

Pheonix frowned at him in confusion "Wolf said we had crossed paths…"

Snake grinned, "Oh, we did more than cross paths Hero. We were working together."

Wolf glared at Snake and bit Croc's hand that was covering his mouth. "Don't listen to him, Nix! He's trying to mess with you! Forget him, and get out of here!" He shouted out before Croc swung him around and punched him in the face, knocking him to the floor. He looked over at Snake, a satisfied look on his face.

Pheonix surged forward to his fallen brother and stood protectively over him. His eyes promising a fight. Croc growled at the dark haired man, Virgil and John readied themselves to help if it was needed.

Snake just laughed out loud. Everyone turned to stare at him. "That's what we want you to do, Hero. Test which side you really are on. I guess there's only one way to find out for sure though."

Wolf groaned from the floor, and sat up rubbing his jaw. Pheonix looked down at him, and gave him a hand up. "What do you mean?" he demanded.

Smirking, Snake answered. "Are you still working for International Rescue? Or for us?"

Shock registered in four pairs of eyes, they subconsciously glanced at each other, before returning to Snake. "Well, lets find out shall we?"

Moments later, John and Virgil found themselves lined up against a wall, with Wolf next to them, though Croc was having to hold him up.

Snake was once again standing close to Pheonix, who was getting paler by the minute. Memories tried to surface, but he kept shutting them out. His head began to pound. He was beginning to get very confused.

"Your choice, Hero." Snake told him. "Which life do you want? Freedom with the wild Wolf here." Pointing at Wolf, Snake gave Croc a small nod with his head. Croc twisted Wolfs arm tighter behind his back, causing him to groan out loud again.

Pheonix clenched his fists in sudden anger, at his own lack of control of the situation.

"Or do you wanna return to being a blue birdie, locked in a cage with these sissies." He pulled Pheonix over to the two brothers and stood him in front of them.

Virgil could take no more. "Scott! It's us, your brothers! Come on Scott, look at us, remember who we are, what we mean to each other!" he called out to his eldest brother. Rhino stepped forward and hit Virgil across his face with his gun. Virgil fell into John and knocked him to the floor with the momentum of the powerful blow.

Scott stared in confusion and horror of what Snake might be offering him. "I…I…" He shook his head to try to clear it, when he heard John call out to him.

"For Gods sake, Scott, I know you're in there somewhere! Why the hell would we go to all this trouble? You're our brother and we're taking you home with us!" Then he, too, was silenced, with a swift kick to his stomach. He curled up in a protective ball, next to Virgil, who was out cold next to him, a large, dark bruise forming on his cheek.

Snake smirked at them before concentrating on Pheonix again. "See? They even claim to be your brother! These little boys in blue, pathetic aren't they?" He pushed him back so they were once again in front of Wolf.

"Nix." Wolf pleaded, his eyes locking on to the confused blue eyes, "Block them all out, I know you can do this. Trust me, bruv. Trust me." Wolf tried to get through to him, he could see the almost wild look start to claim the dark haired man, as confusion set in, combined with pain.

Pheonix shook his head again, then turned to Snake. His voice strong, "Who are you?" was all he said, but it spoke volumes to Wolf. Snake let a small frown escape before answering his question. "Who am I? I can't answer that until you tell me who you are."

Pheonix opened his mouth to speak, but a voice from the floor answered loudly for him. "You are Scott Carpenter Tracy. An International Rescue Agent. A much loved brother, and a friend." In surprise Scott looked down at the now familiar voice.

"Virgil", he whispered in recognition. His eyes lighting up, he looked at his other brother who was getting up from the floor, holding his stomach protectively. "J…John?"

John smiled and relief flooded his face "Yeah Scott, it's me. Welcome back, big bro."

Their happy reunion was short lived, as Snake scowled and flicked his eyes at his boys. Rhino instantly pulled both brothers off the floor, shoving Virgil to Snake and grasping his own hand tightly around John's throat.

Scott was left in front of Wolf, who looked more than worried. He attempted to get Phoenix's attention back to him. "Nix, don't listen to them! It's the drugs left in your system talking. They aren't your brothers, remember! Whatever they led you to believe, I'm your brother. Nix, look at me!" He pleaded. He knew if Snake muddled his mind he would be useless to them.

Pheonix blinked and turned to Wolf. "I…I don't know" he started to say, "For a moment there, I..thought, ...I have a strong feeling that..." Shaking his head to clear it, he was bombarded with voices from Virgil, John, Wolf and Snake. Each trying to get him to listen to his voice.

Then he snapped. "ENOUGH!" He yelled at them, throwing his arms wildly in the air. "LEAVE ME ALONE!" And then he turned to run away. Relief filled Wolf, hoping the dark haired man would make it away to safety.

But Snake was too quick for him and he pushed Virgil at Rhino and grabbed Phoenix, swinging the distraught man around, slashing his arm with his knife in punishment.

Scott cried out in pain as he felt the knife slice through his tender flesh, just below where Snake had caught him last time. Snake put his hand around Scott's throat; lifting him off the ground. Snake shook Scott as he gave him a final ultimatum.

"No one said I couldn't damage you, Hero. I just ain't allowed to kill ya yet." Scott gripped Snake's hand at his throat, desperate to be able to take a breath. He was going a deep shade of red as he slowly suffocated in the larger man's grip.

As his vision started to go grey, Snake dropped him to the floor and strode back to the others, three of whom were very angry, but unable to do anything about it.

Rhino shoved Virgil back at Snake, who instantly put his arm around the chestnut haired man's neck with the knife tip pressing against his windpipe.

Virgil closed his eyes as he felt the cold, sharp blade press in. He carefully swallowed, then held his breath and waited for what could be the end.

John was panicking. Where the hell was Gordon? How the hell would they survive this? He could feel the tension of the people in the hanger. Any wrong move and they could all lose their lives. His eyes moved to look at Scott, who was still on the floor, trying to recover his own breath with short, fast, haggard gasps.

John prayed his older brother would look up and remember them. Right now, he was their only hope.

Scott raised his head slowly from the floor. He began to focus his mind, and the first thing he saw was John watching him in despair. As John watched, he saw the conflict going on in his brother's mind, and yet he could think of nothing to say. So he just stared and prayed a silent message to his brother.

Scott's eyes flicked to Wolf, who was battered, and bleeding from the rough treatment of his so-called teammates. Wolf blinked slowly at him, and gave a small smile of encouragement. That gave Pheonix hope. He turned his attention to Snake, and Virgil.

Snake sneered at him, "What's it gonna be, Hero? You with us? Or the wimps in blue?" He moved the knife across Virgil's neck, leaving a thin crimson line in its wake. Virgil had broken out in a cold sweat, and kept as still as he could.

Scott stood up on shaking legs, holding Snakes eyes for a moment, he gave his answer in a hoarse voice. "I'm with you."

John and Virgil groaned in dismay, all hope gone of rescuing their older brother, and escaping themselves.

Snake grinned in pleasure, and he looked over at Wolf gleefully. "So Wolf, looks like the Hero saved your skin this time. Release him for now Croc." Croc roughly pushed Wolf away from him, and Pheonix caught him before he fell. Relief flooded through him. He and Pheonix would be spared for the moment.

Virgil opened his eyes to see for himself what he hoped he would never see. Scott had become a stranger.

John bowed his head low, defeated. "Sorry boys. Looks like you finally messed up a rescue, huh? Whatever will your family say when they find out how your lives ended?" Snake tried to get a reaction out of them with his teasing. He moved his knife into the air, ready to stab Virgil in the stomach. All eyes were upon the gleaming blade.

Then a voice spoke out which made them all jump.

"Let me do it."

As Snake thought about the sudden request, sinister shadows crept into his dark eyes. Nodding his agreement, he put his knife away. He released Virgil, pushing him into the wall, and signalled Rhino to do the same with John.

The two Tracy brothers lent against each other, and each felt sick to the stomach as they watched, in amazement, the scene unfold in front of them.

Snake pulled his gun out of its holster and handed it to the young man.

"They're all yours."

TBTBTB

A nice cheery chapter for you all at christmas!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Hob x


	13. Chapter 13

Hi all, thank you for all your reviews, I think I'll just go and hide now!!!

I would say 'enjoy'...but...

**Chapter 13**

The Hood chuckled to himself, as he thought of Jeff's reaction when he found out that it was his eldest son who had been the one that had his finger on the trigger.

The sheer irony of it. He would gloat over it later, in the man's face. But now he had to collect what was his ticket to the secret base.

He was nearing Vixen's Radio room when he felt a presence from behind him. He stopped, swung around and said out loud "I know you're there. It's no good hiding. Come on out."

There was a shuffling sound, and a whispered argument before two shadows emerged from a dark corridor that he had just past.

"Ah, so Jeff has sent his princess and her man-servant after his heir as well. You don't seem to be doing very well do you?" He spoke pleasantly, as if they were old friends.

Parker drew himself up, insulted at being could a 'man-servant'. Penny put a calming hand on his arm and stepped forward.

"Belah Gaat I believe. We should have guessed you would be behind this."

"Moi?" He said in mock surprise, "You think I'm behind what exactly? You know I only have an interest in stealing the Thunderbirds and destroying Jeff and his awful family of brats."

Parker moved closer, "You h'insult us and h'our friends, sir. I will not stand by and listen to this rubbish."

The Hood smiled at him. "Well, how about sitting down then?" His eyes suddenly glowed red, and Parker felt a sharp pain pierce his head, bringing him to his knees. "Argh." He cried out.

"Now that's better, a much more respectable position for a slave to be in, in front of his masters." He looked at Penny briefly, "Don't you agree my dear?"

Penny looked furious. She leaped forward to down the man with a high kick across his head, but her foot froze inches away from impact. She frowned and wobbled as she struggled to move it towards him, but the Hood just smiled kindly at her shaking his head. "Oh, the young these days have no respect for their elders." He paused as he caught sight of her broken shoe inches away from his face, "Really my dear, you should take better care of your shoes." He then released her from his hold, and she fell backwards on top of Parker.

"Ooff!" he cried out.

"Thank you Parker." She responded before standing up and brushing herself off. "Mr Gaat, I think we've all had enough of your little games. Parker!" she motioned him up off the floor with her hand.

"With pleasure, Mi-lady." He responded by walking forward and bowing in front of the Hood before taking a fighting stance.

The Hood just watched with interest, then turned his back on them saying, "I would love to stay and watch, but I have other pressing matters to attend to. Good day!" Waving them away, he walked off along the corridor.

Penny and Parker looked at each other in shock. Then Parker stood up, straightened his tie and gave a blood-curdling war cry as he charged after the Hood. He gave a flying leap towards the Hood, and missed, as the Hood sidestepped smoothly out of his way.

"Really!" The Hood huffed.

Suddenly he found himself on the floor, Parker had swung his leg behind him and caught the Hood behind his knee. "Ouch, curse you! You will pay for that!" His eyes started to glow red as he strated to stand up, when Penny appeared behind him and brought her handbag down on his head. Hard. Not enough to knock him out, but so he lost his concentration. He yelled out in anger, and pain.

Suddenly a door opened, and a very angry looking Vixen strode out into the corridor. "What's all this noise?" She pointed a gun at the intruders. "Who are you?" She asked harshly, then she recognised the Hood. "You!"

"Yes. Me. Here in person to collect what is mine. And anything else you have of his possessions."

Vixen narrowed her eyes before waving him down another corridor that led to the room where Scott's things had been placed. She motioned Penny and Parker away to the side. They reluctantly complied.

The Hood held out his hand to Vixen. "The watch, if you please."

Scowling, she handed over the precious metal box.

"Thank you my dear. Now I will take what I came for and be on my way. You may play with these good people. Good day!"

He turned and went down the corridor from which Penny and Parker had emerged from.

As he disappeared around the corner, and his footsteps faded, Penny spoke out to their red haired jailer. "Vixen, I presume?"

Vixen swung her gaze back at them. "Wee, who is asking?"

Parker cleared his throat, and Penny gave him a small smile and a sly wink, "Well, let's just say, from one lady to another…."

TBTBTB

Gordon looked at his watch, and sighed impatiently. He had been waiting 20 minutes so far, and he had just lost his patience.

"Sorry, Father," he whispered. He silently opened the door and slipped out into the dark tunnel. Quietly making his way down the tunnel, he got closer to the hanger.

His watch suddenly started beeping at him, making him jump and swear out loud.

"I told you to stay put!" Jeff's angry voice came out at him as he answered the call. Jeff's anger face appeared on the screen. "Alan said your position moved, he was worried you'd been discovered. Now what the hell do you think you're doing?"

Gordon sighed, and reined in his temper. "They need my help, sir. I can feel it. Something's gone wrong and I'm going in. Agent 4 out." He switched his watch off so no more calls would come through. With a grim smile, he knew he would pay for it dearly when he got back home. Disobeying a direct order from his father, and then cutting off communication. He'd be cleaning the pool and the toilets for at least two weeks between rescues, with a toothbrush. If he was lucky!

TBTBTB

Snake handed the gun back to Wolf. The battered face was a mask that kept his feelings concealed as the heavy black weapon was placed in his hand.

Pheonix looked in surprise at his older brother, his mouth hanging open unable to say anything. He had never thought he was a cold-blooded killer. Pheonix held his breath as he tried to gather his thoughts. He shook his head to clear the fuzz that he felt. Too much information was pushing in on him.

The gun was wrong.

Killing was wrong.

The feeling was so strong, he was becoming more distressed, and Scott knew he had to stop Wolf from firing it. He put his hand on his brother's arm and turned him so they were facing each other.

Wolf's eyes were locked with his own. Pheonix swallowed and whispered desperately. "Don't do it." Wolf just looked at him. Scott spoke this time. "Please Wolf, don't. Put the gun down."

His arm was shaking as he gripped tightly onto his older brother's arm.

Wolf continued to stare at him when Snakes voice penetrated the heavy silence. He was standing to the side with Rhino and Croc, not far behind Scott, but they couldn't hear what had been said.

"Well, boys? Come on, we're waiting."

Rhino snorted in distain. He would not forgive anyone. If Wolf didn't shoot the International Rescue guys, then he would shoot Wolf.

Virgil leant partly on the wall behind him and slightly on John. His face felt on fire, and he was sure it would swell as big as a balloon: one eye was already too sore to open.

For a moment, to his horror, he thought Scott had asked for the gun. But now, as he watched his eldest brother begging with the blond haired man, he knew Scott was in there somewhere. He felt both fear and hope mixed up together. He wished he could shout out loud and hug Scott to help bring him back. He looked so beat up and lost and confused and scared. Not the confident, protective brother that you could always rely on.

Though, Virgil thought, Wolf seemed to have the same effect on Scott as Scott had on his own 'real' brothers. If it had not been so serious, Virgil would have given more consideration to the fact that maybe Scott needed someone to rely on sometimes and talk to.

He was the one who always got Scott to open up when he carried too much pressure and it threatened to overload him. Maybe he should have tried harder and more often.

John's eyes darted between Scott and Wolf, trying to judge what they were going to do. When Snake spoke, John glanced over at Snake and back to Wolf's face.

He stood up straighter in preparation as he saw the taller mans expression change slightly. He thought he knew what was going to happen. Unable to signal Virgil, who seemed out of it, John braced himself.

Wolf listened to Scott. His pleading was so unlike the man he had first met on that mountain just over two weeks ago, it almost broke his heart that he was part of the cause. He never meant anyone to get hurt, he just wanted the money, lots of it. And Vixen's love.

Was he willing to pay the price? These men helped people. They didn't deserve to die.

He only asked to kill the International Rescue men to stall for time. He was not sure why, but at the time it had seemed like a good idea. Now he wasn't so sure. Now, as he held his gun in his hand, he knew that if he didn't shoot them, he and Pheonix would lose their lives. It was written on Snake's face.

If he did shoot them, Pheonix would never trust him again, and being in the unstable state of mind he was in right now, Wolf knew he didn't have much time before he needed to inject the dark haired man with a double dose of the drug.

If it went wrong and one of them got hurt, he would never live with himself again.

But he knew he couldn't kill them, and he knew Snake knew that too. So why did he let me have the gun? He mused. Then Wolf glanced at Snake's smug face for a few seconds.

Snake was hoping he would make a mistake. Either way, Snake had won.

He looked Pheonix in the eyes, and saw something that made him decide. His own face lit up with resolve, suddenly, he knew exactly what he was going to do.

He held the gun tighter, turning away from Pheonix, and slowly raised it up so it was aimed right at Virgil. Gently, he began to squeeze the trigger, counting himself down "3, 2, 1."

In that moment, a few things happened simultaneously.

"NO!" a voice cried out.

BANG!

Wolf suddenly swung the gun towards Pheonix.

BANG!

"NO!" another voice cried out.

The noise echoed around the hanger. Then as if it had been all in slow motion, the speed and sound were turned back to normal. Snake stood where he was, a sick, surprised grimace on his face, eyes wide in shock.

Croc and Rhino were stunned.

John and Virgil were rigid with horror. Not sure why they were even still alive. It happened too quickly. Unable to move, they just stared.

Wolf and Scott were the only ones who had moved. They were both lying on the floor, a puddle of dark blood seeping out from beneath them.

"Oh my!" Lady Penelope's alarmed voice sounded out from the doorway.

Then it was all action.

TBTBTB

Gordon heard the shots.

Without anymore thought of stealth or his own safety, he sprinted the rest of the way along the tunnel, and burst in to the hanger, skidding to a halt.

The sight that greeted him was not pleasant.

TBTBTB

Alan was still having trouble with the channel Virgil had left open. But he had no doubt in his mind that the two bangs he had heard were guns being fired.

Then when he saw Gordon's position speed up and join his Virgil's and John's, he feared the worst and instantly contacted his father.

TBTBTB

Everyone have a very Happy New Year.

Don't ya just HATE chapter 13's??? I do!!!

Please let me know what you think, am I really that mean?!?!


	14. Chapter 14

As promised, the next chapter (out in under a week I must add).

**Chapter 14**

"NO!" Scott cried out, leaping forwards to push Wolf's aim away from his younger brothers. As Scott surged forwards, Wolf twisted his upper body purposely around towards him. Pheonix's eyes widened in shock as he heard a shot go off, followed instantly by his brother's gun. He felt the impact as the bullet hit him.

The momentum of his fall knocked both him and Wolf to the ground. As the pain spread over his body, he became oblivious to everything. As darkness finally took him, he heard the shattered silence surround him.

Snake watched gleefully as Wolf took aim, and enjoyed the look on both Scott's and his real brother's faces.

Revenge was sweet.

But then it all went wrong.

The Hero shouted out and made to push Wolf, who then swung his gun towards him.

Snake heard the shots, and was stunned that he felt a sting on his arm. An evil look settled on his face, when he realised he had been hit.

Wolf had shot him.

He used his other arm to pull out his knife, and then with a quick glance at his bewildered companions to check they were going to back him up he started forward towards the men on the floor.

He didn't even take three steps before he was stunned in the back by Gordon's gun. As his body crumpled to the ground, Gordon shot Rhino and Croc as well, and the three of them were left in a heap, forgotten, as the people remaining awake had other, more important concerns to attend to.

TBTBTB

"Damn!" Jeff Tracy swore, banging his fist down on the desk in front of him in frustration. All he could think about was the possibility he had now lost more than one son, maybe even four of them. Losing Lucy was bad enough. Then Scott going missing, now maybe permanently…. he didn't dare think about it. But to lose any of his sons, he felt his insides crumble as he tried to come to terms of what might have happened to them.

"Mister Tracy, sir, you must calm down." Kyrano started to say to try to comfort his angry and distraught master. "The boys will be fine. Right now, Alan needs you to tell him what to do."

Alan watched in dismay, as his father appeared to be having a break down in front of him, and he almost regretted reporting in the gunshots.

"Father, I'm going to keep trying them. All of them. They'll be fine, Kyrano's right, we have to look for hope. Gordon will save them."

Jeff looked into his youngest son's eyes, and saw a very grown-up young man looking compassionately back at him. "When did you grow to be so wise?" he whispered at his usually impatient son.

"From you, and Scott, and ….." His voice faltered and he couldn't go on.

"You're right son." Jeff closed his eyes briefly to compose himself, and then gave Alan his instructions. "Take a deep breath. This is just like any other rescue mission. Keep trying their communicators. Let me know of any, and I mean it Alan, any changes at all, okay?"

"Yes sir. Thunderbird Five out." He gave his father a brave smile before switching the screen to another channel. Opening up first John's, then Virgil's and Gordon's, in rotation, he began to call out for them to respond.

TBTBTB

John watched the whole scene unfold in front of him. It was like watching a movie in slow motion. He was ready to pull Virgil to the side at the last moment, but then his older brother made an unexpected move. Wolf had changed his target and John shouted out "NO!" thinking he would shoot Scott instead. In horror, he watched Wolf pull the trigger, and heard a blast, but his older brother was already moving.

Then time sped up for John, and he focused on the two bodies lying on the floor in front of him. Lady Penelope's voice startled him into action.

"Oh my!"

That was when he noticed Parker lowering his gun, a guilty/surprised look on his weathered face.

He felt Virgil moving away, and John followed him towards the two men on the floor. They were almost there when they noticed the blood seeping out from underneath the bodies tangled on the floor.

As they got closer, Virgil's knees gave out due to his dizziness, and he stumbled to the floor, taking John down with him. They knelt together, frozen to the spot as they watched Wolf, who had risen from the floor and was crouching over a very still Scott.

TBTBTB

Wolf knew he would only get one shot. One chance to get it right.

He hadn't expected Nix to move, therefore unbalancing him. His aim was out.

He had meant to kill Snake with a bullet through his heart, but had only succeeded in slightly injuring the brutal man. As he felt Nix fall towards him, he felt the other mans body jerk when he pulled the trigger. Then they hit the floor and the breath was knocked out of his body on impact.

As he lay there, he realised he was still alive. The room seemed to be quiet.

He smiled and thanked his guardian angel that was surely watching over him. Turning to look at Nix, his face fell as he noticed how pale and still the man next to him was.

Quickly he rolled over, putting his hands on the floor to push himself up, and accidentally put his hand in a sticky, warm liquid on the floor. "Shit!" He swore when he realised what it was.

Wolf crouched over Scott, his face close, almost touching. "Come on Nix, open your eyes, wake up, kiddo." He shook the still form and tapped his face with his clean hand.

His bloody hand held Scott's hand tightly, as if his grip alone would hold on to the young man, stopping his soul slipping away as he continued to bleed beneath him.

Pheonix's eyes fluttered open. They were full of pain. He stared at the man in front of him, his eyes not really focused. "I…I…can't breathe…anymore…" He whispered in agony "…tell me…who…where … am…. I?" Confusion had set in. Scott closed his eyes, but Wolf knew he should not close them, not now he was awake.

"Stay with me Nix," His voice desperate, "Keep your eyes open, bruv, come on Nix, please, look at me."

Tears began to pool in Wolfs eyes as Scott tried to open them again, the flickering of his lashes fading weakly, and finally hiding the dim cobalt blue eyes into nothingness.

Wolf suddenly became angry. He was so scared, he just started shouting. "Nix, don't you dare close your eyes," he yelled at the pale man beneath him "Stay with me, Nix, I'm not going to lose you too!" He raised his hand to hit the dark haired man across the face. In the hope it would wake him up.

But before he could strike his target, Wolf found himself being pulled roughly away from him. Someone had grabbed his arms from behind. He fought to get back to Nix, but found a young ginger haired man standing in front of him, a grim and worried expression on his face. He was wearing an International Rescue uniform.

In the back of his mind, Wolf knew he had seen this man before, but right now, all that mattered to him was the man he had come to think of as his younger brother.

"Don't move." Gordon ordered harshly, pointing his stun gun at him. Wolf swallowed, the hands that held him were suddenly released and a pale blond wisp of hair flashed past him and knelt on the floor where he had been only seconds before. Wolf nodded his silent co-operation. His troubled eyes left the ginger haired man, and fell on Nix, who was now surrounded by his ex-team mates.

He had been forgotten.

But he couldn't move. He sat, as if frozen to the spot in a dream, a nightmare. History was repeating itself.

A fear beyond belief overtook him, and he suddenly could take no more as he watched the International Rescue men try to resuscitate his brother.

TBTBTB

When Gordon heard the shots he ran like mad to find himself in the silent hanger.

He quickly took in and his brain put together what he thought might have happened.

He saw a very bruised Virgil leaning against John, he had never seen either of his older brothers in such a state of shock.

He saw the man behind his brother's kidnapping, and as the tattooed man made to go forward, Gordon reacted without even thinking about it.

He whipped out his stun gun and fired at Snake, then took out Rhino and Croc as they turned towards him.

From where Gordon was standing, he could not see anyone else in the hangar, but as he walked towards his brothers he heard a voice cry out desperately. It stopped him in his tracks.

"Shit! Come on Nix, open your eyes, wake up, kiddo."

Gordon moved around the control panel to see Wolf hunched over another man, who seemed to be out cold on the floor. He tore his eyes away from the scene to check out his own brothers.

That was when Virgil began to move, followed closely by John, but suddenly Virgil took a fall and John tripped over him. They knelt in silent agony, just watching the other two men in front of them.

That's when it hit him. Gordon felt the breath steal away from his lungs. The man on the floor was Scott.

Wolf's voice penetrated his numb mind "Stay with me, Nix, I'm not going to lose you too!"

Then like lightning, John was up and pulling the man away from Scott, Gordon found himself covering the ground and placed his own body in between Scott and the conman.

He raised his stun gun. The temptation to fire it was strong, but the look on John's face stilled his finger, and instead he threatened the man "Don't move."

He had no other words to say. But the beaten man wasn't going to try anything. He could see it written on his battered face.

TBTBTB

After sorting Vixen out, and leaving her tied up and gagged in her Radio room, with the promise that they would return. Penny and Parker made their way back towards the hanger. They hoped to catch, or at least follow the Hood to see what was so important to him that he should not fight them properly himself.

Approaching the hanger, they heard a voice call out "Let me do it." And a few gasps of surprise.

When they snuck up to the entrance door, they could see Virgil and John looking worse for wear against the far wall, and Scott and another man whispering intently to each other.

Then Parker spotted the gun, and saw the look John gave the man holding it. It was as if he had accepted his fate.

Parker pulled out his own gun and as Wolf raised his, Parker knew he would only get one shot. He had to save the boys. They were his friends.

Parker realised his mistake a little too late.

As he pressed the trigger, Scott moved into the firing line to save his brothers.

The bullet hit, and Parker watched, mesmerised as Scott's body jerked once as it hit him, and he and the other man continued their descent to the ground.

Penny gasped out loud, grabbing his arm for support. "Oh my!" She knew what Parker had done. He had just shot Jeff Tracy's eldest son.

Then he noticed John looking at him. Parker closed his eyes, wishing they had stayed at home in England.

TBTBTB

For Scott, it was all a bad dream.

He was floating on a bed of nothingness. He was everything and nothing all at once. He was aware of people around him. He could hear their voices, sometimes calling to him, sometimes to each other.

He was falling into a void.

He felt himself fly upwards at one point, and then his world was filled with loud noises, and pain. He panicked and found his body jerking in response. But hands were suddenly upon him, holding him down. A voice tried to soothe him. But it did no good. He did not know who they were.

He tried to speak, but no words came. He tried to break free, but was immobilised. Then he felt a prick of a needle going into his arm, and he felt himself falling once again, back into that deep, dark void.

He couldn't help but think how much safer it was there. He didn't have to feel or think.

Nothing mattered.

He was free.

TBTBTB

"NOOO" !!! I hear you cry...don't worry, I ain't killed him...yet!!!

thanks to those of you who are so kind to review for me, it puts even more fun into writing this, and really spurs me on. I seem to be on a roll at the moment ...

Next chapter will not (hopefully) be so angsty. I hope this chapter read alright, but I wanted to get all the characters views across.

Just a small hint for the next chapter ... has anyone seen where Weasel and the Hood got too???

Hmmmm...

A.N. Bluegrass's story 'Road to Recovery' is AWESOME, read it and weep (I mean that literally, coz I did!!!)

Hob x


	15. Chapter 15

Well, I finally got this one together...with huge thanks to "Bluegrass" - for introducing me to - "Fellowriverrat" (who patiently helped me with all my 'questions' - stupid as they were!).

And to Sam1 - whose constant badgering, and finally with a challenge I got this up sooner than expected!!!

Thanks guys!!!

A/N also, to "anon" - you know who you are (you didn't sign in so I could'nt reply!!!) Yes you're guess is correct, thank you for noticing the Scott/Pheonix 'mentality' changes, I'm glad that it was picked up on. Thanks!!!

**Chapter 15**

John dropped down on his knees next to his older brother. Quickly he put two fingers on Scott's neck to check for his pulse, letting out a sigh of relief when he felt one, though it was weak and too fast for his liking. He jumped when he felt a hand squeeze his shoulder.

Looking up he saw it was Gordon.

"How is he?" Gordon asked, not really wanting to know. Scott did not look good. His skin had a pallid complexion to it, Gordon knelt down too and pushed the dark damp hair away from Scott's face.

He was cool and clammy against Gordon' hot hand. "Shit!" Gordon exclaimed, "What happened?" Quickly he looked his brother up and down, spotting the blood on the floor beneath him. "John, where's the blood coming from? We have to stop it. Get a grip on yourself. Scott needs you."

Gordon's words sunk into John's shocked mind, and he reacted the only way he knew how. To take charge of the situation.

"Let's turn him over. Parker shot him." He explained to the ginger haired man as he checked Scott's back. "No exit hole, so the bullet is still inside him. Looks like it hit him either in his chest or shoulder." They quickly moved into position and turned Scott carefully over onto his back.

"Damn it! Gordon, take off your sash. We'll use them to stem the bleeding for now. Then go back to Thunderbird two and get the med-kit and the stretcher. And hurry, we need to get him to the nearest hospital as soon as possible."

"FAB!" Gordon was up and running back down the tunnel without even a glance back.

John threw a glance behind him at Virgil whilst he worked. Virgil was still kneeling on the ground where John had left him, though Virgil now had a hand pressing on his forehead, and he had closed his eyes.

"Virg?" No response. John tried again, this time his voice had an edge to it "VIRGIL!" His brother looked at him, his eyes not quite as focused as they should be.

Damn, thought John, just what I need. He felt, rather than saw another person arrive in front of him, on the other side of Scott. He turned back to face whoever it was.

"John, what can we do?" Lady Penelope's concerned voice floated down to him.

John heaved a sigh of relief. "Put pressure here. We need to stop the bleeding," he ordered.

Penny grimaced, but pressed her pristine hands on top of the now bloody sash on Scott's shoulder. John had pulled off his own sash, and began to wrap it around the gash on Scott's arm.

"How can I help, Master John?" Parker quietly enquired, as he stood fidgeting beside Penny.

"You've done enough!" was John's harsh reply. Penny gasped and quickly reprimanded the young man. "John, you know Parker would never shoot any of you on purpose. It was an accident. We thought that man was going to shoot you and Virgil."

John looked instantly rebuked. He wiped a bloody hand over his forehead, leaving a smear of red across it. "Sorry Parker, I didn't mean it. Just kinda came out."

Parker looked grimly down at the blond haired man knowingly. "That's quite H'understandable sir. Though the first reaction H'is usually the right one."

John blinked, and guilt spread over him as he felt his face flush. But Parker had moved away from them and over to Wolf. "H'I'll guard this fellow, shall I?"

"Good idea Parker." Penny said, smiling kindly at the older man, who gave a small nod of his head in return, though his eyes were slightly haunted at the damage he had caused.

John turned back to his patient. "Penny, you need to apply more pressure than that. Don't worry, it won't hurt him. Here, do it like this" He put his hands on top of hers and pressed down harder to show her.

Penny frowned, but complied. "There's so much blood!" she exclaimed, Scott was such a sickly, pale colour; she had every right to be worried.

John ignored her.

"Parker, can you check Virgil, please. I think he's concussed, he was knocked out for a few seconds earlier." John put feelings aside, for now. "Gordon should be back in a few minutes with the med-kit and a stretcher."

"I'll be glad to, Master John." He crouched down in front of Wolf's face and stared hard in his eyes. "Move, and you'll be the one on the floor with a bullet stuck inside you," he told the man coldly.

Wolf shivered, and mutely nodded his acknowledgment.

John put his fingers back on Scott's neck to see how his pulse was doing. It was weaker, and thready. "Damn it, Scott! Why did you jump in the way like that!"

Penny knew Scott needed more help than they could give him. "Where's the nearest Hospital from here?" she asked, wanting to keep John focused.

He looked up from Scott, "I don't know. I'll contact Alan. Keep that pressure on his wound." She did just that, as he lifted up his arm and spoke into the mini speaker on his watch. "Agent 2 to Thunderbird 5, come in."

There was static, then a broken message "….ird 5, …..ordon an……ott…..ase….." Then the signal went again.

John scowled, not understanding a word of what Alan told him. "Alan, come in please. We need to know the nearest hospital to our location."

Once again, there was just static. "Damn." Then an idea popped into his head, swinging around with sudden force, he stared at Wolf. The man who seemed to want help his older brother, even though he had been lying to him.

"Where's the nearest Hospital?" he demanded impatiently.

Wolf looked back at him and blinked a couple of times, an idea forming in his head, before he responded carefully. Swallowing he answered "The PGH,…in Arizona." His eyes looked down at Scott briefly before returning to the blond haired man he had thought would be no match for him.

John nodded once and turned his attention back to his injured brother.

"He's so cold." Penny observed as she gently wiped some sweat off Scott's forehead with the back of her hand. "Is there anything we can cover him with?"

Wolf answered before John could "Yes. We have some blankets over in that cupboard, and an emergency first aid pack," He pointed to the changing room door where the flight suits were kept. "I'll get them if you like." He offered quietly, not sure how the offer would be taken.

Penny sat silently and watched John, who obviously did not want to leave his brother's side. He looked at Wolf, as if to weigh the chance of whether the man would run, or actually do as he offered.

Wolf could see what was going through John's mind. "I'm not going to run, you know. I happen to be on your side." Wolf paused, putting on his most sorry look. "You saw what Snake was trying to do. I could have shot him" He swung his head over to Virgil. "But I didn't. I want to help. Please, if only for his sake."

John caved in, "Okay. Get your Emergency Kit, and the blankets. But Parker will be keeping his eye on you the whole time."

Wolf swallowed and nodded. Getting up, he saw Parker pull out his handgun for the second time that day. And once again it was pointed right at him.

"H'Any trouble from you, and I promise I won't miss this time." Parker sternly told the con man.

Wolf nodded once again, not trusting his voice. He went into the small room and pulled out the blankets and first aid Kit. Which just happened to be next to the intercom system. He pretended to rummage as he pressed the speaker button, to the control room in the hope that someone was there listening.

"Weasel, Foxy? Are you there? If you can hear me, International Rescue have me and Nix, we're heading to the Phoenix General Hospital…." His voice faded out and he let go of the button when he heard Parkers voice from the door.

"Having a little trouble H'in here?"

Wolf gathered his pile in his arms, and turned to walk past the older man, "Yes, but I've got it now. Thanks." He adjusted the bundle he was carrying and walked quickly past the old butler, back into the hangar and gave the things to John.

TBTBTB

Weasel searched the few security cameras that were set up throughout the hide out.

He needed to find Vixen. The information he had discovered about Snake urgently needed her attention. He knew everyone else was either in the hangar, or outside catching the International Rescue agents, so he didn't even bother to check there.

There was no sign of her anywhere. He spotted Pheonix walking back towards the Hanger wearing his International Rescue uniform.

He looked at the screen in confusion. Why would Pheonix be wearing his International Rescue uniform? Unless it was all part of Snake's plan, whatever that may be.

Or perhaps Pheonix had a twin brother, he mused. That would explain the seemingly endless energy of International Rescue personnel, he mused as he got up and walked to the door. Or maybe they had cloned themselves.

Shaking his head at the thought, he exited the control room intent on finding Vixen on foot. He headed for her last known destination.

The radio room.

TBTBTB

Gordon ran.

He ran harder and faster than he had ever run before.

He left his other brothers helping Scott, whilst he went back to TB2 to retrieve the medical kit and stretcher. Even though he was incredibly fit, his breath came out in erratic gasps. They had finally found their missing brother, but not how they had hoped.

Skidding to a stop out-side the door of Thunderbird Two, Gordon waited impatiently for the great green hulk of a machine to open the door, once he had punched in the security code.

As soon as the gap was big enough, he squeezed in and ran to the med-bay. Rushing around, knocking things over, and slamming things about, he grabbed everything he needed and charged back out in to the daylight.

He tore across the uneven ground back to the tunnel entrance. He was almost there, when a familiar figure emerged in front of him, effectively stopping him dead in his tracks.

His eyes widened, and his mouth dropped in shock.

A handsome man was standing in the entrance, wearing a matching uniform to his own, but with a pale blue sash.

It was Scott.

Alive and well.

Gordon found his voice. "Scott?" he squeaked out cautiously, his limbs shaking from the exertion, and the tenseness of his body.

Scott smiled and nodded. He opened his arms wide, inviting the young ginger haired man towards him.

The things Gordon had been carrying fell to the floor, forgotten, and Gordon stumbled towards his older brother and embraced him desperately.

"God Scott, I….We thought you'd been shot" He gushed out at his brother. "Where the hell have you been? How did you get out?"

Scott returned the hug, awkwardly closing his arms around the younger man.

A red gleam entered his eyes, as he answered the question. "It wasn't me."

He carefully pushed Gordon away from him, and held him an arms length away. Looking deeply into the amber eyes, holding his gaze, Scott spoke to him, "Let's get to Thunderbird One. We need to get back home. But I'm having trouble getting my thoughts together. You're going to have to fly her for me."

Gordon looked as if Scott had grown an extra head, "You want ME to fly your 'bird?"

Scott stared hard at him, his blue eyes tinting red once again. He answered sternly. "Yes. Let's go, before anyone notices I've escaped."

Gordon nodded mutely. Together they turned and headed back to the awesome machines of the International Rescue organisation.

As they walked, Gordon felt somewhat detached from his body. Scott was very protective of his 'bird, but he had been kidnapped, and as far as they knew, drugged. Gordon shook his head as he typed in the code to release the door of Thunderbird One.

Just then his hazy mind remembered Virgil and John. They had not come out the tunnel yet. Surely they should all leave together.

He turned to Scott to ask him when his watch started beeping on his wrist, he held it up to speak to his father, but it was Alan. He had over-ridden the silencer on Gordon's watch. "Thunderbird 5 to Gordon. Do you read me? Come in Gordon." The voice was impatient, with a hint of worry.

Gordon smiled disarmingly at his younger brother. "Hey Alan. What's up?"

Alan looked at him in shock, and then frowned as he answered. "What the hell do you mean 'what's up?' I've been trying to get hold of you all for the last 20 minutes. Dads going crazy back at home. You'd better have good news. Is everyone alright? I heard a gun go off." Alan didn't even take a breath as he spoke to Gordon in relief for finally talking to someone. "And please tell me Scott is standing next to you, because his signal showing on my screen again."

Gordon gave him a funny, crooked smile. "Everything's fine…" He paused as if to think about it, then continued "Yeah, no problems. I found Scott. See?"

He turned his arm around so Alan had an upside down image of the eldest Tracy brother. He gasped out loud. "Scott! It is you!"

Scott smiled. Though it didn't reach his eyes. "Hi ... Spud, I'm coming home."

"Cool! I'll let dad know the good news. Thunderbird 5 out."

Alan switched off the com-link. Gordon's screen went blank. He blinked his eyes as the flash brought him back to his senses.

"Hang on …!" He started to say, as realisation fell upon him. "We can't leave without Virgil and John, they're hurt too." He looked up at his oldest brothers face and then it dawned on him that the deep red eyes looking coldly at him were not Scott's. "You're not…."

He did not get to finish his sentence, but fell to his knees as someone attacked his mind with such force that his vision went instantly black and he passed out onto the dusty ground.

Scott pushed Gordon in distain with his foot, just to check he was unconscious. "Well, that's another Tracy brat out of the way for a while. Now, let me see what wonders my new toy holds for me!" He bent down and undid Gordon's watch and put it into his pocket.

The now, lone man climbed into the Thunderbird and found his way to the cockpit.

"Wonderful! Soon, very soon, all my dreams will come true!" He settled into the pilot's seat and tenderly stroked the control panel. "Alright my beauty, take me ….home."

He closed his eyes and pulled forth Scott's memories, on how to fly Thunderbird One. Smiling to himself, he started the massive engines and slowly she lifted, at a slightly odd angle, into the sky. Hovering for a few moments, the nose suddenly dipped downwards before being corrected, then Thunderbird One flew slowly off into the horizon.

TBTBTB

She chomped hard at the gag in her mouth, her teeth grinding into the material. She tried to scream out her frustration at being caught. But to no avail. They had tied her up so well she was completely stuck.

The door opened, and in walked Weasel.

He stopped short when he saw her, then rushed over and pulled the gag off her mouth.

"Where ze 'ell 'ave you been?" She hissed at him angrily. Her dark eyes flashing dangerously. "'urry up and untie me!" She demanded the older man.

Not saying a word, he quickly cut the ropes and stood back to let her up.

She was livid, her red hair swished as she started to rant and rave about how stupid they were to trust Croc and what an idiot their client was to double cross them.

"General Bron and Belah Gaat will regret their deception! Snake and the others will pay for their stupid games!" At that comment, Weasel narrowed his eyes and decided that it was time to say his piece.

"Calm down Foxy. We can still save ourselves, and take our investment with us too."

She turned back to face him, "'ow? What did you find out?" Her voice was more in control now.

He told her what he had discovered, and overheard. She listened grimly, and she understood what he was thinking. As he spoke, she nodded her agreement with his ideas' and by the end was smiling broadly.

Together they carefully made their way back to the control room to scheme how they were going to save what they had achieved so far. It was time to clear out of this hideout. Time to move on again.

As they entered the room, Wolf's hushed voice came across the com-link.

"….International Rescue have me and Nix, we are heading to the Phoenix General Hospital…"

Then the link went dead.

For the first time since Snakes arrival, they both smiled genuinely at each other. "Well done Wolf!" Weasel commended the young man.

"You know what to do," Vixen said, her eyes suddenly alive with satisfaction, "I'll get ready to leave."

Weasel picked up the phone.

The first call was going be to Caspian.

TBTBTB

I must admit, I was worried about loading this chapter, but I'm even more so of the next one!!!

Hob x


	16. Chapter 16

**Sorry it's taken me so long to update. :( **

**This one is extra long as a treat!!!**

**Thanks to all my reviewers, this is for you!!!**

**Special mentions go to Jendarra - Thank you for all your great reviews. and to Sam1 - who is awesome and I think I can safely say that the score is now 2-2 ?!?! ;-) or is it...**

**Enjoy...**

**Chapter 16**

Jeff paced the lounge, his back stiff and tall as he strode away from the wall with his sons' pictures hanging across it, and headed over to the large window with the balcony just outside, giving the spectacular views of part of the Tracy Island beach and swimming pool.

Jeff paused to stare blankly into the glittering blue horizon. Worry creased his older, handsome face.

Random thoughts coursed through his head.

Could these people possibly ruin everything he had set out to achieve? Who were they? He turned to look at his eldest son's silent portrait. Why Scott, why any of his sons? These thoughts bombarded him as he waited anxiously for some word. Any word from any of his sons.

What had he, Jeff Tracy, done in this, or a past life to deserve such unfair treatment from …whatever God was supposed to be looking after him and his family.

He closed his eyes to blot out the light and filled his mind with images of his lost wife.

"Oh Lucy, why? Why did you have to go? Why aren't you keeping an eye out for our boys?"

BEEP. BEEP.

Jeff jumped at the signal from Alan's portrait, almost running towards his desk and tripping over his large chair, before smacking the button to allow communication. Alan's smile brightened the room.

"Good news Father!" he called out cheerfully. His boyish, young face grinning happily at him from the space station. "I've just spoken to Gordon, and guess what? He found Scott!"

Jeff let out a huge sigh of relief. Taking a deep breath, and composing himself, Jeff smiled back at his youngest and asked "How are they? Is everyone alright?"

Alan nodded his head enthusiastically "Yes sir! They're fine. Scott and Gordon are flying home now. I'm tracking their signals, I estimate their ETA, at present speed" He frowned slightly as he worked it out. "Is three hours and 22 minutes, they seem to be taking their time. Maybe they're waiting for Thunderbird Two to catch them up, it hasn't even taken off yet."

Jeff looked mildly surprised, but made no comment. Content that they were safe, and homeward bound at last. "Good. Have you got hold of Penny yet, son?"

Alan shook his head. "No. She's still underground; John and Virgil are as well. I did speak to John briefly, but the signal kept breaking up. He mentioned something about a hospital. I'm guessing he and Virgil are taking the criminals there. Perhaps they shot each other!"

Jeff gave a small smile at the thought. Perhaps that's why they sent Gordon home with Scott. There was not much chance his hot-headed, red-haired son would want to take those criminals to hospital. He would be more likely to suggest dropping them in the nearest ocean.

TBTBTB

"Stay with me Scott. Don't you even think about doing off to la la land, do you here me!" John spoke quietly to his older brother, knowing that he would not actually hear his words, but it helped John to concentrate.

Penny watched the blond haired man in concern. She knew he was worried, they all were. Scott had not woken since she got there, and his breathing was becoming shallower with each passing second.

John had used the first aid kit that Wolf gave him to fix a clean patch and a bandage securely on Scott's shoulder. He had then placed his brother in the recovery position, with his knee bent towards him. Penny had covered him with a blanket whilst John continued to check his brother's pulse and breathing.

Time was growing short.

"Where the hell is Gordon?" He suddenly growled. "He should have been back ages ago." John looked at his watch, then his blue eyes turned to Penny's. Looking back down at his deathly pale brother, he made a decision.

"Right, we've waited long enough. Parker, can you help Virgil walk back to Thunderbird Two?"

Parker was already on his feet and helping Virgil to stand-up. "H'of course. We'll lead the way." Together they started out the tunnel.

"I'm okay.." Virgil started to say gruffly, "Let me go, Parker. You help John carry Scott. I'm fine." Parker stopped walking abruptly and let Virgil go. Virgil was not expecting the support to disappear so soon, and wobbled under his own weight. "Whoa.." He said as his knees started to buckle at the sudden weight, before Parker grabbed his arm and once again lent the injured man his support. "Ok, ok." Virgil allowed and accepted the help, admitting defeat.

Parker smiled briefly. "Mi-lady always said stubbiness ran in the Tracy blood. You can't beat 'em, so just join 'em! H'until they realise they are wrong!"

Wolf was standing as well and quickly offered his assistance to John.

John accepted gratefully. "You take his feet. Penny, I want you to continue monitoring his wounds and breathing. We're going to lift him onto this blanket as a temporary stretcher. Hopefully we'll meet Gordon on his way back here."

They moved into position.

"Right. On the count of three, we roll him." John started to say, before Wolf interrupted him.

"Is that on three, or after three?"

John glared at him. "After. One, two, ..three. Now!"

They carefully rolled Scott onto the laid out blanket without any problems. Wolf moved to Scott's feet, while John grabbed hold of the corners of the blanket by Scott's head.

Penny kept one hand on top of Scott's shoulder, and the other one wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"Right, is everyone ready?" Nods from everyone confirmed they were ready. "Okay, take it steady. One, two, three, lift."

Together they all stood up and Scott was raised from the ground. Slowly Wolf led the way out of the hangar and into the dark tunnel. They passed the unconscious Snake and his two cronies as they went.

"What about them?" Penny asked John, indicating the men laying on the floor. He just grimly shook his head, and said "Leave them, Gordon stunned them, so they'll be out of it until the authorities get here. At least."

Penny nodded, and concentrated on her task. The small procession made their way through the tunnel, with Parker using his torch to light the way.

Virgil did his best to keep upright, and concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, whilst trying to control the urges to throw up. His world was still swimming and lurching around him. He groaned as they came out into the light of day, closing his eyes tight shut. His vision seemed to do a back flip and his knees buckled as his body reacted to the motion his head felt. Losing his grip, Parker dropped the torch as he tried to catch Virgil before he hit the floor.

The clatter notified the others that something was wrong.

"Virgil!" John cried out as his brother fell to the ground once again.

It was then that Virgil lost the battle with his stomach.

Parker grimly held the younger man until the heaving had ceased, then asked "H'are you alright, Master Virgil?" in concern.

Virgil's eyes were squeezed shut, the un-bruised side of his face was pale. All he could do was groan again. "Up you get, Master Virgil. H'I believe we're nearly there. Just a bit further." Parker hauled Virgil up with a strength that both he and Virgil didn't know he possessed.

Together, at a slower pace, they continued out into the daylight and headed towards the giant green cargo ship of International Rescue.

Wolf and John carefully followed them. They were now right behind Parker and Virgil, catching them up when Virgil fell. John knew his brother was in good hands, and he put his anger to the back of his mind. Besides, there was nothing he could do. He had his own hands full with Scott.

Relief flooded him as they made their way out of the darkness. Something was bothering him though.

Where the hell was Gordon?

As they began the climb up the slope towards the two Thunderbird craft, Wolf stopped suddenly. "My hands are losing their grip. We're going to have to put him down before the blanket slips through my fingers."

"Okay. Lower him gently, now."

Scott was lowered to the ground. Wolf and John clenched and stretched their hands and arms. Penny adjusted the bandage on Scott's knife wound and then looked over at the giant green Thunderbird. Relief filled her knowing they were going to make it.

"Right, let's go…." John started to say, that was when she noticed something. Scott's chest had stopped moving.

"John!" She suddenly shouted out, interrupting him. "He's not breathing!"

John was down on his knees instantly.

He lifted his brother's chin, so his head was tilted back and the airway was clear. "Penny, keep checking his pulse," he ordered.

He took a deep breath and pinched Scott's nose as he pressed his lips over Scott's open mouth and released the oxygen into his brother's lungs. Out the corner of his eye he watched as his chest rose and then fell as the air inflated the lungs.

He took another breath and repeated the action.

The others watched in helpless horror.

Virgil tried to go back towards the group on the floor, but was stopped by Parker. He started to swing his head towards the old butler, but groaned as his head pounded at his skull with the sudden movement.

"Let's find Master Gordon h'and get your Thunderbird ready to go, Master Virgil." Parker spoke softly and turned a zombie-like Virgil around and they stumbled on towards the green plane. "Your brother needs to get to the hospital now. H'are you able to open the door?" He asked as Virgil lent heavily on the side of his craft with his good eye shut. Virgil made no response.

Parker glanced over at the group on the floor with Scott. He felt guilt spread over him like a wild forest fire. It burnt his insides, but he pushed it aside, knowing that they had to get into the Thunderbird, and out of the people who could open the doors, one was dying, one was administering CPR, and the only one left was Virgil…

Then it hit him.

Gordon! Parker helped Virgil to slide down the big craft so he was sitting on the ground next to the door. "Wait here sir. I'm going to get some help."

He walked away from Thunderbird Two, to see if he could locate the other Thunderbird. Maybe Gordon had gone to Thunderbird One instead. Parker climbed a rise on the slope, then he noticed a blue heap of cloth on the ground.

Muttering to himself, he quickly jogged towards the heap, which, as he got closer began to take form as a body on the ground.

"Come on Nosey, keep going. Almost there." He encouraged himself. "Mister Gordon!" He exclaimed as he rolled the ginger haired man onto his back. He began to urgently tap his cheek to wake him up. Gordon had no injuries that Parker could see.

As Parker continued his tapping, a little harder, he took in the surroundings, he spotted the telltale burn marks on the ground.

"So Thunderbird One was 'ere."

Gordon groaned and swatted Parker's hand that was irritating his sub-conscious mind. "Go..'way…Grandma…"

Parker smiled in relief, "Up you get mister Gordon, Mrs Tracy is on her way. Somethink about H'missing apple pie!"

Despite his slow return to wakefulness, Gordon's eyes suddenly snapped open, and he sat up in a sitting position so quickly he banged heads with Parker.

"Ouch!" they said at the same time. "Sorry!"

Gordon put a hand on his head, and squinted at Parker, "What's..?" He started to say before Parker spoke urgently to him.

"Thank goodness you're awake, Master Gordon. You must come quickly, we need to get into Thunderbird Two. Your brothers need you."

Parker stood up, and pulled Gordon up when he held out his hand. Without asking anything else, he followed Parker back towards the Thunderbird at a run.

TBTBTB

Back in the control room, Weasel put down the phone and smiled as he started shutting down all the systems and began the self-destruct procedure.

Opening the com-link, he let Vixen know he was ready to go.

TBTBTB

Alan watched his brother's signals as they emerged from the tunnel and made their way towards Thunderbird Two. Penny was with them. He let out a sigh of relief.

He was about to open a channel to Penny, when the emergency alarm went off.

"Damn it!" He swore, as he twisted in his chair to answer the call "Why now?"

Clearing his voice, he answered the call. "This is International Rescue, what is your emergency?"

"Calling … Oh, thank god!" A grateful voice replied. "We need your help! Please, you must come!"

"Please calm down. What's your situation? How can we help you?" Alan asked. He was unsure if they would be able to respond. At least Scott and Gordon were up and ready to go to the scene. The others shouldn't be too far behind. He glanced at the screen again, and frowned when he saw that only Virgil was by the Thunderbird Two, the others were a small distance away. They must have stopped for some reason.

"We're stranded, the tide is coming in and we can get off the island. We were taking pictures of the swell for a documentary, but after the second swell our boat broke away and the coast guards won't answer!" The mans voice rushed out at Alan. "Please, we're running out of time!"

Whilst the man was talking, Alan quickly pinpointed his position, a smile appearing on his face in relief, he was not far from Thunderbird One.

"Just hold on, sir." Alan reassured the man. "Our operatives are on their way to you now. Keep calm, and get as high as you can."

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" The man gushed in obvious relief. "We'll do that."

Alan flicked the switch and contacted Thunderbird One. "Thunderbird Five to Thunderbird One, come in please."

To his surprise, there was no answer,

"Thunderbird One, come in please. Gordon, Scott, come on guys, this isn't funny." Alan's lack of patience was wearing thin. "If you don't respond in the next 3 seconds, I'm reporting you to Dad!"

The com-link sprang to life. "This is Thunderbird One. What do you want?" Scott's voice sounded slightly cross with his younger brother, then his face appeared on the screen.

Alan just glared at him. "You go missing, and then you guys pull a prank like that on me? What the hell do you think is wrong?" Alan retorted before continuing with the reason he called in the first place. "We've had a call come in. You should be there in about 30 minutes at your current speed, which is slow even for Gordon." He paused as he noticed something wrong. "Where is Gordon?"

Scott looked at him in annoyance. "In the back. So you want me….us to 'rescue' someone?"

A frown crossed Alan's face. "Yeah Scott, it's what we do, remember? Are you alright? You look a bit…odd. Are you feeling ok?"

Scott snorted "Of course I'm alright, never felt better in fact!" And to prove it he gave Alan a huge grin "You want me to perform a 'rescue', then I shall do so! Just send the co-ordinates spud!"

Alan just stared at him like he was mad. "Okay Scott, but get Gordon to call me when he comes back up."

"Of course. Now, I have a rescue to get to!" And with that he shut off the link and began to laugh as a new idea to upset and help him destroy the Tracy clan.

Alan pressed the button that sent all the info to Thunderbird One, and then he contacted his father to let him know about the slight diversion.

TBTBTB

Gordon fired up Thunderbird Two's engines. Slowly the great craft lifted up from the ground and headed away from the danger zone, towards Phoenix City.

Gordon radioed ahead to the hospital and warned them that International Rescue had some casualties, one requiring emergency assistance. The hospital assured him that they would be ready and waiting. They set about clearing the car park, so the plane had somewhere to land.

Parker, Wolf, Penny and John were tending to the injured Tracy brothers in the medical bay.

John managed to get Scott breathing again, and with Gordon's help, they loaded him onto the stretcher and carried him on to the giant plane, with Parker keeping a watchful eye on Wolf.

Virgil lay on a bed next to Scott, his eyes tight shut. Unable to open one eye anyway, and every time he tried to open the good one, he had the urge to throw up. The room kept spinning, and his head felt ten times bigger than it should be. Every time he tried to move he ended up groaning instead. He wanted to know if Scott was going to be alright, but knowing he was right next to him helped.

He silently thanked John for that. John knew the close relationship the two brothers had, and he hoped the closeness would help Scott as well. He sat between the two of them, monitoring both his brothers.

The intercom made them all jump as Gordon's voice penetrated everyone's thoughts.

"We're coming in to land now guys. Get ready to move out."

"FAB Gordon. See you shortly." John replied getting up form his seat and preparing Scott to leave. "Parker, can you push Virgil please. Wolf will help you. Penny, you wanna come too?"

Penny nodded. "Yes, you boys will have to leave. Parker and I will stay with them. You don't want to blow your cover."

John frowned. He had not thought about having to come back as a civilian. "Damn it. I want to stay with them."

Penny reached out and put a comforting hand on his arm. "You've done you're best, now let the doctors do their job. If you want, fly back to LA, change and drive back here in FAB 1. Parker, give John the keys and the turn on the GPS."

Parker handed them over, and gripped the blond-haired man's hand tightly. "We'll see you soon mister John. Nothing will happen to them. H'I promise."

John looked Parker deep in the eyes and retorted "It's too late for that, Parker. But I'm keeping you to your word." And with that Gordon entered the room and grabbed the nearest handles of Scott's bed. John took the other side and they left the craft in a hurry to meet the doctors and nurses who were running across the car park to meet them.

Penny gave Parker a quick hug, as she brushed a tear away from her eye, "He's angry and scared. He did not mean what he said."

Parker just looked away, "Trouble H'is mi-lady, I feel the same way," he mumbled quietly.

Virgil moved his hand and managed to grab hold of the old mans hand. "She's right you know." He whispered, before letting out another groan.

"Come on, let's get you out there too." Parker said, with a bit more confidence.

Wolf never said anything, but followed after Penny and Parker, as the medical staff took over Virgil's stretcher, and he too was rushed into the hospital.

As John and Gordon passed them, John didn't even look at any of them. His mind was on his oldest brother.

Wolf was forgotten by everyone in the distraction, and made his way into the Hospital to meet up with Caspian. He paused to watch the familiar green plane fly off into the distance.

He didn't have long.

TBTBTB

So thats another chapter completed. Any and all feed back is always appreciated ... hint-hint !!! ;-)

Should I leave any teasers for the next chapter...hmm...

NO !!! you can all suffer (grins evilly) but I will tell you that Caspian finally makes an appearance, and I wonder who will be the first to guess 'who' Caspian really is?!?!

Hob x


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Doctors and nurses were rushing around. They seemed to be everywhere. The long white corridors and enclosed rooms always made Parker feel uneasy. He hated hospitals. They had a certain smell that shouted out death and illness at him. He saw people looking gormless and sad, and then they passed the 'no hoper' Wards, with people calling out "Let me die!" at the top of their weakened voices and screaming, or rambling about nothing.

Hospitals gave him the creeps. He felt a shiver go down his spine as their footfalls echoed hollowly back at him as they walked.

Penny and Parker were shown to a quiet waiting room. Whilst Virgil had been taken off to be checked over, Scott had also disappeared behind closed doors for surgery. Penny had been given some forms to fill in and busied herself writing in the blanks for both Tracy boys.

Parker stood fidgeting by the door, unable to sit down and wait for any news. Penny looked up from her form filling. "Parker, why don't you go and find us some tea? And maybe something to eat? They will be fine, and John will forgive you. He didn't mean what he said. Don't worry."

Parker turned to look sadly at her, "He may well forgive me, mi-lady. But I might not be h'able to forgive meself." He pushed the door open, "One cup of tea coming up," he told her as he left her in the silent room to think about his words.

Sighing, she continued the tedious task that had befallen her.

TBTBTB

Gordon flew Thunderbird Two back towards FAB 1's GPS signal. John had been onto the World Police, informing them of the headquarters of the terrorists that tried to hold the world to ransom.

He also told them not to allow any TV crew near, as Thunderbird One was still in the area, and he requested that they put armed guards on it until they came to retrieve it later.

They had gratefully agreed.

Satisfied, John went below to change out of his uniform.

Gordon was nearing Fab One's destination when he radioed Alan to bring him up to date. Knowing the youngest Tracy would be beside himself with anger and worry, Gordon didn't think John was up to it as he was still mad with the situation. He also knew that Alan was still upset with John for saying it was Scott who blew up the ship, and was now part of the terrorist group.

"Thunderbird Two to Thunderbird Five."

No answer, Gordon frowned and tried again. "Thunderbird Two to Thunderbird Five, come in Alan."

The com-link crackled and then came to life. "Gordon! Finally, I wondered how long it would take you. Scott said you were pre-occupied with something. Anyway, can you tell me what the hell happened to Scott back there? He's acting all weird, and he keeps calling me 'spud'." He took a breath to carry on, but Gordon interrupted him.

"He what!…You… huh?" Shocked, Gordon didn't understand a word Alan was saying, his mind already full of the recent events. His face showed complete confusion. "What the hell are you talking about Alan?"

Alan narrowed his eyes, "What am I talking about!" He paused "I'm talking about Scott. You know, the man flying the Thunderbird you're in right now! Stop joking around for once will you Gord's, cos it's not funny."

Gordon was now even more confused, and he was starting to worry about Alan's odd behaviour, and he spoke slower for Alan's benefit. "Alan, I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm piloting the Thunderbird, not Scott."

Alan stared at him, "So where's Scott gone?" Realisation hit him, and once again he went off on one. Almost yelling, he rambled on at Gordon. "You haven't sent him out to pick those guys up on his own? He's not behaving like himself, you should be out there, not him! Are you mad? Dad is going to freak out when he finds out what you're done! Jesus!"

Gordon sat dumbly in his seat. Why did Alan think Scott should be piloting Thunderbird Two? And which 'guys' was he talking about? Not the Snake man, surly. He blinked at the flushed face on the screen in front of him, completely baffled.

Having reached FAB 1's location, Gordon lowered the green craft down carefully, and opened the internal com-link so John could hear what was being said.

"Alan, let me get this clear. You think Scott is flying Thunderbird Two." He spoke clearly, knowing his younger brother would start shouting at him in an instant if he thought he was being messed about.

Alan took a deep, calming breath. "Which pond did you crawl out of today, Gordon? Why the hell would Scott be in Thunderbird Two? You're both in Thunderbird One. You, Scott, and Thunderbird One are all on my screens, so stop being a prat!"

Gordon's mind was whirling. Clearing his throat he tried to make sense of what Alan had told him "Just play along with me for now Al. So, Scott and I are in Thunderbird One,… and where are we going?" He asked carefully as John appeared at the door behind him. Gordon threw him a concerned look before turning back to Alan.

"Okay Gordon, I'll play your little game." Alan almost sneered, sure he was being teased cruelly by the family prankster. "You and Scott are on a rescue call out to help three men stuck on a small island, if you look out the window of Thunderbird One, you will see the men and Scott, whom I'm guessing is out there helping them get on the rescue line, while you play cheap, sick tricks on me. You really are some piece of work, Gordon."

And with that he signed off in disgust.

John walked over to Gordon, "What the hell was that all about? What did you say to him?"

Gordon looked offended "Nothing! I never got to say a thing! You try, I surrender, but I think something strange is going on. He was really serious when he said Scott and I were on Thunderbird One."

"Let me try" John said, sitting down next to Gordon. "Thunderbird Two to Thunderbird Five, come in Alan. This is John."

They waited, and Alan answered instantly. "John, how are you doing? I tell you, Gordon is doing my head in today. Dad is going to kill him when he and Scott get back home."

"What happened?" John asked carefully, warning Gordon to remain quiet. He had an uneasy feeling about this.

"He tried to pretend that he didn't know that Scott was flying Thunderbird One. And he sent Scott out side to pick up those men that called in to be rescued, I mean, after all Scott's been through, you'd think Gordon would pull his weight for once!"

John stared at Alan. "What makes you think they're on Thunderbird One?"

Alan pulled a face at John, "Not you as well? What is this? A conspiracy against Alan day? Okay John, try to get yourself out of this one." He challenged his brother, folding his arms in defiance.

John sat back in his seat, "Alan which Thunderbird am I in?"

Alan rolled his eyes, "Thunderbird Two. You're just landed right next to FAB 1. You must be dropping Parker off to pick it up, as Penny is in Phoenix still."

John's eyes lit up, "Gordon, come here," he said. Gordon moved so Alan could see him on the screen.

"But!…You're with…..Scott!" He gasped out in surprise. He looked down at his computer screen again to check. "But if you're in Thunderbird Two, who's in One with Scott?"

John smiled grimly. "Alan. Scott is in Phoenix Hospital. So is Virgil. Penny and Parker are keeping an eye on them. We've come back to pick up FAB 1. Thunderbird One is still in LA. No-one has moved her."

Alan looked like a goldfish as he took in the information John had just told him, which conflicted with the computers in front of him. "Gordon, are you wearing your watch?" Alan asked quietly.

"Yes." He went to pull up his sleeve to prove it. "Um…No! Where the hell did that go? It must have fallen off when I … " He paused to think about what he had been doing. "..I went to get the stretcher, but I met….someone? ….I'm having trouble remembering, Parker found me. I think." He scratched his head and tried to get past the fog in his mind.

John watched him, and put the clues together. "Alan, you have Scott's, Gordon's and Thunderbird Ones signals in one place?"

"Yes. And I spoke to Scott a while ago. But you're saying he's in Hospital?"

"That's right. There is no way Scott could fly. Trust me Alan, he's been shot and drugged. He barely knew who we were. Does Dad know anything?"

"Yes, he knew Scott was on his way home. But if we've both seen Scott, ... or are there two Scott's now? God this is confusing!"

Gordon piped up, "Lets contact Dad. He'll sort this out. I think one of them must be an impostor. How the hell did he get into Thunderbird One anyway? And which one is the real Scott?"

"I'll do it, Dad thinks you're on Thunderbird One with … Scott. Thunderbird Five out."

"FAB Alan. Keep us informed." John answered, before he and Gordon shut down the giant green plane, and prepared her to be left behind. "You do realise Virgil will kill us if his 'bird gets nicked too!" Gordon pondered out loud.

John gave a small smile, "Come on. Let's go. I'm sure our 'Scott' is the real one, and we need to find out what happened to you too."

TBTBTB

Jeff had the volume up high on the television to take away the peace and stillness of the Island with the absence of his sons.

He lent back, finally beginning to relax in the black leather chair as he waited for the news to come on, and his sons to come home.

Beep, Beep, Beep.

He whipped his head to the portraits to see who was contacting him, hoping it would be Scott, who had yet to call in to talk to him. But to his pleasant surprise, it was Penny.

"Hi ya Penny. I'm mighty glad to see you're alright." He looked at her tired image as she smiled weakly down at him, pushing a stray strand of blond hair off her face. "You are alright, aren't you?" He asked suddenly in concern before she could speak.

"I'm fine Jeff. Really."

He sighed in relief, "Look Penny, I've been trying to contact you for days. I'm ..well, what I'm trying to say is… well, I'm sorry Penny, for the way I've treated you."

"Jeff, please, let me speak." She interrupted him, equally embarrassed, knowing she had deliberately avoided his calls. Guilt flooded over her. "I know you didn't mean it. I am to blame as well." She looked behind her briefly to check who was coming in the room.

Jeff noted the glance "Are you in trouble, Penny?" He misread the look and anxiety on her face.

"No. No Jeff. It's just, well, have any of the boys contacted you in the last hour?" But she already knew the answer as he shook his head left to right, and the fact he was still on the Island. "We are in Phoenix." She told him "I think you should come out here straight away."

Jeff frowned with worry, and a touch of annoyance at the riddles being told to him. "Why? …" He started to say, when the television caught his attention with the mention of his organisation.

"..And breaking News. The base of the World Terrorists has been revealed, thanks to International Rescue. I am told that International Rescue have foiled their plans and found the base. Interpol are investigating the claims, we will bring you more information as it arrives….."

Jeff let out the breath he'd been holding in.

The reporters face changed from excited to sudden shock, his eyes widening as he gasped out "..I don't believe it!….hold on…...Right.." Straightening his tie, he continued, "…Just in, we have unconfirmed reports that International Rescue has deliberately tried to end the lives of three camera men who were filming a documentary…." He paused, putting his finger to his earpiece as if to hear better, "…Oh, we have footage…"

The picture changed to a clear picture of Thunderbird One, it turned with it's nose pointing at the camera men, then it opened fire, destroying the camera, and sounds of the screams of the men diving for cover could be heard.

Penny and Jeff watched the television in horror and shock. The reporter came back on. "…And so we have it folks, have the great International Rescue finally shown its true colours, or has the organisation split in to two sections…..stay tuned as we discuss ………"

Jeff switched it off, throwing the controller across the room. He turned wordlessly to Penny, who's face had paled considerably.

Beep, Beep, Beep.

"Go ahead, son." Jeff's voice had turned deeper and grave as he robotically answered the call.

Alan's worried face appeared. "Father, it seems Thunderbird One has been stolen…and John says Scott and Virgil are both in hospital. But John, Gordon and I have been talking dad, I'm not sure if John's right though, and Scott is in hospital, or if it is Scott in Thunderbird One, but under someone else's control." He asked his father the hardest question of the day. "What should we do?"

Jeff looked at the now silent television with hate. Then he looked at his youngest son. "Which hospital?"

Alan answered "Phoenix General, sir."

Jeff narrowed his eyes and pinched the top of his nose as he began to try to work out what had happened.

Turning back to Penny, now knowing what she was trying not to tell him, he announced, "I'm on my way…."

TBTBTB

Wolf found a phone in the accident and emergency ward, and dialled a familiar number. It rang a couple of times before a friendly voice answered.

"Research and Development Department. How can I help you?"

"It's me. Has Weasel contacted you yet?" He asked quickly and quietly into the receiver. Keeping a watch over the people coming and going around him.

"Yes. I take it you want to see me?" The voice became less cheery.

"I need you to get into surgery to get near…" He paused as two nurses scuttled past, "..the man International Rescue have dropped off. We need to get him out of here, and soon."

The voice snorted down the line at him. "You think I can work miracles or something?"

Wolf smiled, "Yes. And you know it too. Your sister does it all the time. If not for me, then for the memory of Nix, you WILL do it Caspian." His voice had changed from friendly to hard.

Silence on the line and heavy breathing. "Don't you ever mention his name to me again!" The voice hissed, "Fine, I'll do what I can, but no promises. And don't bother calling me again Wolf, because I won't be here!"

Wolf answered calmly "You always say that, but you can't keep away. Foxy never lets anyone get away. This time you'll have to come with us, though, Snake is lose and wants revenge. I guarantee you'll be on his hit list. I'll meet you in the north car park entrance in one hour. Don't be late." And he put the phone down before Caspian could answer him.

Then, putting his hand on his head, he hobbled over to the reception and gave the receptionist a winning smile. "I'm afraid I've had a bit of an accident …" He started, his battered good looks and politeness winning the woman over, and she put him to the top of the waiting list to be seen.

Taking a chair near the door, so he could see everything and escape if he needed to, Wolf picked up a magazine to read until it was his turn to be seen.

TBTBTB

And so another chapter ends... are you all still with me???

This one is for Jendarra. Thanks!!! (see I did get it out sunday, but only just!)

A big thank you for those of you kind enough to let me know what you think. And to anon - you really are very observant, I am impressed!!!

Hob x


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

The dim white room was shaded by shuttered blinds.

Virgil lay back against the crisp white sheets on the hospital bed. He had been whisked away from his brothers and taken straight to the emergency ward, where he had been given a full check over. Luckily he had been diagnosed with a concussion. They asked him lots of questions about where he hurt, how it happened, if he could see, what day it was and if he felt sick at all. They kept on until he almost felt like shouting at them to leave him alone, with the pounding against his tender skull.

They finally took him to x-ray his face, to check that his cheek had not been fractured, but the results were in Virgil's favour, and finally he got his wish and was left alone in a darkened room to get over his headache, with a nurse coming in occasionally to check on him.

People had been thrilled when International Rescue appeared, and the local media went into a frenzy, trying to get into the rooms, and find out who had been brought in to the hospital, but the staff had managed to keep them at bay. So far.

Finally the excitement eased off, and the hospital returned to its normal duties, though Virgil could still hear excited whisperings of him being brought in by International Rescue, and he tried to block out the noise as he let the medication he had been given to help numb the pain flow into his body.

He began to relax as the medication took effect, letting his mind wander to his older brother and how he was. He heard the door pushed open gently and footsteps softly moved over to him. He felt the presence of the other person standing next to him, and letting out a sigh, he opened his good eye expecting it to be Penny to let him know how Scott was.

TBTBTB

Caspian rushed along the corridors towards the Intensive Care Wards, in the hope of finding the man that Wolf was after.

Pausing to listen to a group of young nurses gossiping about the arrival of International Rescue and the handsome man they had brought in. Caspian joined in.

"So which ward is he in?"

The nurses turned and one held her head higher with a knowing grin, "In my ward. He's so good looking, even though he is out of it now, and with the bruising."

Another nurse piped up "Bet you can't wait for bed bathing time, huh!" the others gave cheeky grins. Caspian's eyes rolled in disbelief.

"The pleasure will be all mine," she answered, blushing, "And I can't wait to talk to him about his 'ride' here!"

Caspian's interest was spiked "Do we know who he is yet?"

"No." The nurse shook her head in disappointment, "I was on my break when they brought him in, and then I had to cover for Rachel."

There was a murmur of "Lucky cow" from one of the other girls listening in, but she carried on telling her piece of the story without pausing. "Who took over assisting Dr Wilson treating him. But I'm on all night, so lots of time to get acquainted!"

Another nurse spoke out, wanting to give her piece of information "I heard some posh lady and an old man is filling out forms as we speak. I saw them in the waiting rooms on C9."

Caspian glanced down at the name badge, which gave the ward the nurse worked at, to find out where the target was. It would be easy pickings. He was not in a difficult ward to get in.

This would be a piece of cake.

TBTBTB

"Ah, so you are awake. I tell you, I've never seen such a fuss as this. Anyone would think you were famous or rich or something with all the chatter going on about your mode of transport here!" The white-clad doctor smiled down at him while glancing down at his notes at the same time. "But I guess its not every day International Rescue drop a nice handsome young man at the doorstep!"

Virgil tried to smile, but it only reached one side of his face. "Is that what they're saying?" He asked, his voice rough and dry.

She nodded at him before turning to hand him a glass of cool water from the table next to the bed. "Just sip it." She told him, "Something like that." She answered his question with a knowing look in her eyes.

She helped him sip from the glass before placing it back on the table.

"My name's Sandra. I'm your jailer, I mean Doctor! And you have been upgraded to the 'Minor Head Injury' Ward." She gave him a small smile and waved her hand towards the door.

Virgil slowly raised his head a little and spotted a wheel chair by the door. As she moved it over to the bed, he got a better look at her and instantly he found himself warming to his Doctor.

She continued to explain, "We also need to move you from your adoring fans." She noted his confused look. "The Media." She added with a smirk.

"Ah," was all he said, resting his head back down on the cotton sheet. He closed his eyes as he began to feel numb from the effects of the drug in his body, easing the pain.

He felt a warm hand on his shoulder. "Come on. Not that I want to hurry you, but we need to get you off this ward ASAP."

She helped him sit up. He carefully twisted around so he swung his legs down, and edged himself off the bed till his feet were touching the floor.

He asked the question weighing on his mind. "Is there any news of my brother?"

She froze, looking at his bruised face sadly, "I believe he's been asking for you. You'll see him soon. Don't worry." Virgil's face was a picture of relief and astonishment.

He put a hand on the undamaged side of his face, and let out a sigh.

"Any dizziness?" she asked him, a little worried by his reaction.

She was standing in front of him, holding onto his shoulders just in case he decided to suddenly flop forward on to the floor. He opened his good eye again, his face was level with her chest, and his thoughts were suddenly taken away from Scott to the nearest thing. Her low cut, white top. He felt himself go all weak and hot, so quickly he diverted his attention to the next closest thing.

Her security name-tag.

And he read it out loud, trying to focus his mind. "Dr Cassandra .P. Ian."

He paused, now attempting to take his mind off the closeness of her body to his as well. "What does the P stand for?" he asked, unable to stop himself, he added "Pretty?" Damn the drugs, he thought, as they loosened his tongue.

She blushed and stood up straighter, much to Virgil's relief and disappointment, and wagged a finger at him. "Nice try, mister. By the time I finish with you, you won't even want to know me! I bet you use that line on all the nurses 'round here!" He tried to grin at her, as she helped him to stand up and turned him around to ease him into the waiting wheelchair.

"Keep your eyes closed, the lighting outside this room is bright, I'll tell you when it's safe to open them again."

Virgil felt like he was floating, he was happy and he just responded automatically, "FAB."

"Sorry? FAB? What does that stand for?" She was amused and pushed him out into the long white corridor, Virgil silently swore in his head, but was really unconcerned as he gave her some of Gordon's previous attempts to annoy Scott for the abbreviation. "Fully-understood and Briefed, or maybe I meant you're Fun and Bright!" He smirked to himself at his next one "My personal favourite is Funderbirds are Back!"

She grinned at him, even though he had his eyes closed, as she pushed the wheelchair around a corner and towards the lift. But not one to be beaten, she gave him her own idea's "FAB, huh? Okay, smart-ass. How about Follow and Behave, which is what I expect you to do!"

Virgil chuckled at her sense of humour, enjoying the vocabulary game, he added "Sure Dr Sandra, but only because you're Fabulous and Beautiful, and put together with the P for perfect in your name, I will be Faithful and Brilliant just for you!"

Laughing out loud this time, she retorted, "Don't get so personal! If you keep this up I will have to pass you on to Nurse Fat and Brutal!" She stopped at the elevator and pressed the button. "And I've been here long enough to know that it's the drugs talking, not you. When you're free from them, you'll see I'm not so 'hot'!"

She wheeled Virgil into the lift and they went down to the ground floor. The door opened and she quickly looked out the lift before pulling the wheel chair out into the open.

They passed the café quickly and went outside. She paused at the crossing to let the pink car that shot out of nowhere into the car park. Shaking her head she told Virgil "I hate people who drive like that! They're nutters! Keep your eyes closed though, the sun is bright out here."

She continued across the road.

"How come we're outside?" He asked, puzzled. "How far away is this ward?" He enjoyed the breeze on the face as she carried on to her destination.

"You wanted to see your brother, right?" She asked happily. Then she spotted him and waved a hand to the man sitting on a bench at the car park entrance.

He stood up when he saw them, a frown upon his handsome face.

As she got closer, she noted the angry expression.

"That's the wrong one!" he told her harshly, before turning away and running his fingers agitatedly through his blond hair, which shone like gold in the sunlight, giving him an angelic look. But then he turned to look at her again.

Sandra tightened her fists on the handles of the wheelchair, and stopped a short distance away from him. Virgil shifted uncomfortably, knowing there was tension in the air. "Sandra, what's happening? Is there an argument going on?" He had no idea that it was about him.

She put on a cheery voice for him. "Something like that, I'll take a different route." She started to turn the chair around, back the way they had come.

Wolf stormed over, and pulled her roughly away from Virgil, and she gasped out in surprise.

That was enough for Virgil, and he opened his eyes, squinting against the bright sun, he stood and turned in time to see Wolf strike Sandra across the face, knocking her to the ground, shouting out at her in fury. "You stupid bitch Caspian! I told you to get the man they had in 'surgery', did you even think to check his arm for injection marks? Of all the stupid….." He never finished his rant.

Virgil clumsily punched him in the face before stumbling to his knees with the sudden movement. Sandra screamed as Wolf got up and looked like he was about to kick Virgil while he was down, but he knew he had to get away if he wanted to be free.

The commotion had raised the attention of the security guards at the main gate, and they raced over to see what was going on. Wolf turned and fled back towards the hospital, only to bump into a group of men, and someone he'd hoped not to see again.

TBTBTB

Jeff all but ran to the hanger and taxied the Lear-jet onto the runway.

"Tracy One ready for take-off," he called in to Tin-tin.

"All clear to go, Mister Tracy," she replied, "Good luck, sir."

Jeff didn't answer as he took the small jet up into the air and flew it full throttle to Phoenix, Arizona. And to his sons. He felt like he had aged 50 years in the last few days, and he just wanted things to be back to normal. He decided to call John and Gordon to see how they were getting on.

"Tracy One calling FAB 1, come in boys."

"John here, Dad, where are you going?" He had already guessed. "Do you want us to pick you up at the air strip on our way?"

"FAB son. My ETA is 67mins." He gruffly replied.

"Sure thing, Dad, we'll get there before you, I might get Gordon to slow down a bit or Penny will have a hissy fit!"

Gordon smirked as he took his foot off FAB 1's accelerator.

That brought a small smile to his face as he put his point of view across "Okay Gordon, I haven't forgotten you went against a direct order earlier, but heaven help you if you put even a scratch on that car, boy. You'll be Penny's slave for the next century polishing her silver with your toothbrush." John grinned at his dad, as he winked at him. "And that's after you clean the pool. Tracy One out."

Chuckling nervously Gordon turned to glance at John "You don't think he means that do you?"

John just grinned. Gordon swallowed and slowed down a touch more. They would still get to the airstrip first.

TBTBTB

The pink car with three men in it, the eldest now at the wheel driving much faster than his red haired son had, paused only long enough at the North Car park entrance to get a ticket, before speeding along the narrow road, ignoring the speed bumps. He tore around a corner and pulled up in the nearest space.

They climbed out the car and made their way to the doors of the hospital. Jeff pulled out his phone to call Penny, when a shout and a scream from down the road caught their attention.

A blond haired man was sprinting towards them.

John caught his breath, as the man got closer, oblivious whom he was running towards in his flight.

Gordon noticed the woman helping a man back into his wheel chair with assistance from a guard.

Jeff felt John freeze at his side, and heard his intake of breath. He looked past the man and like Gordon, was watching the man in the wheelchair. He had no time to look any closer as the man ran straight into them. John grabbed him and swung him hard against a pillar to stop him racing off.

"What's going on?" he demanded.

Wolf's eyes were wild, he glanced at the guard closing the distance. "I was in the hospital getting treated.." He panted, looking back at John. "When I saw Caspian go past with your friend." He saw the confused expression, so he gasped out quickly "She works for Vixen. She must have been trying to get Nix, but took the wrong man. That was when she leapt at me, I tried to stop her, but all the guards saw was me hassling a woman."

The guard was nearly with them.

Wolf was desperate. "Please! Let me go! I can still help you, she has people and spies everywhere!"

John narrowed his eyes, Wolf's story had a true ring to it. He had helped them so far. To everyone's surprise, John let him go. Wolf gave him a quick smile before punching John in the stomach and running off into the hospital.

The guard puffed past them and followed Wolf into the busy hospital.

Gordon helped John up from the ground.

"You alright, son?" Jeff, concerned and confused by his normally quiet and placid son, was shocked by his behaviour. "Do you need to get checked out too?"

John shook his head, no. He stood up, but it was too painful to stand tall. "If I'm not mistaken, that man in the wheelchair is Virgil dad. And we need to stop that woman with him."

Just then a black Hummer with tinted windows pulled into the car park and stopped next to the group of people with Virgil.

Gordon stared at it and began to run towards it, heart beating fast inside his chest, his father and brother at his heels. "STOP! Virgil, don't get in that car!" He yelled as he recognised the people climbing out.

Everyone turned to look at him.

TBTBTB

So there we have it, a long time coming ... sorry about that!!!

This one is for Sam1, in the hope that I have cheered you up, I worked at it all day for you ;-)

To everyone else, Thank you for your fantastic reviews and questions, please keep them coming, believe it or not, but they do help to inspire me, and keep me on track. And I have tried to please everyone in this chapter, see, I didn't hurt them!!! (well not too much!!)

Hob x


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

Virgil squinted at his Doctor in concern. He pushed the anger he felt aside at seeing her being hit, and replaced it with worry as she helped him back into the wheelchair with the assistance of the security guard.

"Hey, are you alright, Sandra?" Virgil asked gruffly, he had his eyes shut against the glare of the evening sun. He had not recognised Wolf, it all happened too quickly.

She gave him a small smile even though she knew he wasn't looking at her, but her eyes were worried and distant as she looked the way Wolf had run, and saw the men grab him, stopping his flight.

"Yeah, I'm just shocked. That man, he must have escaped from the psychiatric ward." She turned to the guard. "Can you let me know when he's been caught and where he's being held, please?" She handed him a card with a number on it.

"Sure love, no problem."

They all turned to look as a black Hummer pulled up next to them and a man and a woman jumped out. "Anyone need a lift?" Weasel asked his daughter pointedly.

Caspian was about to answer when another voice broke through.

"STOP! Virgil, don't get in that car!" Gordon yelled as he raced towards them.

They all turned to see three men running towards them. Virgil's face broke out into a grin, he recognised that voice and he shouted back "Gordon! John! Dad!" As they got closer he faced Sandra again "Looks like my brothers were heading to the wrong ward. I guess it was lucky we were held up by that man."

She nodded in silence, and swallowed hard. Wolf was no longer there, and she wondered what trouble he'd caused for her this time.

Vixen and Weasel, not wanting to get caught, quickly hopped back into the Hummer, and reversed out of the entrance, smashing the barrier, much to the dismay of the guard who instantly radioed for back-up from the cops.

TBTBTB

Penny looked up at the television in the waiting room, following the reports she'd overheard Jeff listening to back on Tracy Island.

It was one big mess.

The pictures of Thunderbird One were hazy at best, but there was no doubt in anyone's mind that it was one of the International Rescues craft.

They media had gone into a frenzy of excitement, some instantly turning against the very people who risked their lives to save others. The rest were split into two groups, the supporters of International Rescue, and those who were undecided. They were having heated debates on past rescues and incidents that International Rescue had been involved in.

The arguments continued.

Penny sighed, it was going to take a while to clear this up.

She smiled tiredly at a nurse who popped in for the filled out forms, and she asked after Scott and Virgil.

"The dark haired young man is still in surgery. No news for you yet I'm afraid. Are you family?"

Penny smiled "As good as. I have contacted his father, and he is on his way. How is Virgil?"

"Just a concussion, nothing broken. He's been given some pain killers now and is resting. They were lucky to be rescued before the Thunderbirds went rogue." Shaking her head sadly as she took the forms, she left and never saw Penny bristle at her comments.

Penny looked down at her watch and thought it was about time she paid a visit to Virgil, to let him know what was going on. It was best he found out from her, rather than some out-spoken nurse who couldn't keep her personal feelings to herself.

She walked up to the reception desk and cleared her throat to get the attention of the secretary who was glued to the television screen across the main waiting room.

"Yes?" She asked, not quite paying attention. "How can I help you?"

"I'm looking for Virgil Tracy. He was one of the men brought in by International Rescue earlier. Can you please direct me to the ward he is in."

The secretary glared at her. "Look, I don't know how you found that information out lady, but no reporters! Get out before I call security!" She had had enough of people trying to get the room number and information on the young men brought in earlier.

Penny pulled herself up to her full height, "I am no reporter. My name is Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward, and yes, that's a real 'Lady'. Now, before I call up Mr Tracy, and that's 'The' Mr Jeff Tracy, I suggest you tell me where his son is so I can report to him on his condition!"

The secretary had heard of, well everyone knew of Jeff Tracy. She swallowed and nodded her head, taken back by the authority of the grubby, but well dressed woman standing at her desk.

She looked at her list. "He's in room C14. It's down that corridor, turn right at the end and you will see the door numbers as you go. Check in with the Secretary on the corner there, just in case they had to move him." She looked up, guiltily adding "Those damn reporters keep trying to get in to interview and take pictures…"

"Thank you. Now you may get back to your….duties," Penny suggested, flicking her eyes back towards the television screen.

The middle aged woman's eyes widened in shock as she was dismissed, and she didn't know what to say, so she gave a funny, awkward curtsey in stead. But Penny was already walking briskly towards Virgil's room.

TBTBTB

Parker had been waiting for what seemed like forever in the queue to get some tea for himself and Penny, and when he finally came out and started to head back to the waiting room, he saw a flash of blond hair racing in through the hospital doors and heard someone yell, "Stop!" from outside, and then a security officer ran in behind him, calling for back up on his radio as he ran.

Parker instantly knew who the man was. He would never forget him.

Never.

He made to follow, but hot coffee and tea began to spill on his aged hands, so he dumped them in the nearest bin as he passed, breaking into a fast jog himself. He made for the lifts as he saw Wolf make a dash for the stairs.

He thought he knew where the younger man would go, and he was too old to give chase the old-fashioned way. He spoke into his wristwatch as the lift doors opened. "Mi-lady, Parker here. I 'ave Wolf h'in my sights, mam; he's up to something. We're heading your way…" He stopped when the doors slid open on the third floor.

He stepped out and looked for the stairway. His watch beeped as Penny returned his call. "I am making my way to Virgil now Parker. Tail him, and report when you find out anything. Jeff will be here soon. Penny out."

"Yes, Mi-lady." He answered, his concentration on the person panting up the stairs, and finally coming into view.

"Going somewhere H'in a hurry, ain't we?"

Wolf pulled to a sudden stop in front of the stern looking, old man in front of him, and then glanced desperately behind him at the distant footsteps approaching from below. He was so sure he'd get away.

Wolf took another breath to steady himself, before weaving yet another con. Only this time, he was not sure it would work.

TBTBTB

The FBI and Interpol had reluctantly agreed to let the World Police have full assistance and allowed them to command the mission, having been forced to join forces, in the face of the terror threat made to the World.

The newly combined forces reached the abandoned train tunnels at LA about the same time, the giant hover jets swirling dusk in all directions as they lowered to the ground to let off the people to investigate the site.

Black clad men, armed to the teeth, jumped out long before they landed and raced towards the dark entrance, others dressed in the dark blue with FBI printed in white on the back, spread themselves around the area, checking it was secure.

Interpol waited in the distance, not being allowed to enter the fray until the World Police gave them the all-clear.

The man in charge of the operation was not surprised to find the guards they had promised International Rescue to protect the Thunderbird craft which they had apparently left behind, were not needed.

He smiled grimly, as one of his men ran over to him to report. The young officer saluted and waited for a nod before giving his message. "Sir. No sight of any other craft, International Rescue's or the terrorists."

"I know Dixen. Those damn fools, by leaving that bloody ship on it's own, they might have well as dug their own grave. Find out what's in that bloody tunnel. I want answers damn it and I want them NOW!" he shouted over the roar of the heli-jets that were still hovering over the area.

Dixen saluted again, and sharply clicked his black boots together before running off towards the tunnel, his mission to get whatever the man in charge wanted him to do.

Inside the hanger, the black clad team of men had found Snake and his two cronies. They were, as John predicted, still knocked out.

"This one needs a medic, sir." The man bending over Snake called out. Within seconds, two men and a stretcher appeared from the now not so gloomy tunnel. Snake was loaded roughly onto it and removed from the hanger. Rhino and Croc were mercilessly manhandled as each was dragged out by two men behind Snake. They would be taken to a strong holding for interrogation later.

The hanger was empty.

No Jet.

The men efficiently spread throughout the building, finding the control room, and radio rooms, sleeping quarters, and the place that held the information that Penny and Parker had destroyed.

Dixen followed the men with his back-up soldiers right behind him. Outside each 'cleared' room a guard had been left on duty, so no one else could enter.

The FBI wanted to go through the base with a fine comb, and Interpol had agreed not to destroy any evidence as long as they got to check out the base first, after the World Police had finished with it.

One of the men stopped him outside one of the rooms. "Sir, I think you might want to take a look inside here." He moved to the side as he opened the door, and Dixen stepped inside, alone, his men still covering his back.

There was a desk, and pieces of torn up paper were scattered around the room. In the middle of the room was a metal bin that the contents had obviously been set alight, but it had not burnt all the papers completely.

He pulled a browned piece out carefully, and his eyes widened as he recognised part of the diagram that had not been destroyed. It was part of one of the Thunderbird crafts. He caught his breath as he pulled out another piece of almost ruined picture from the smouldering bin. This one was of a face of a dark haired man, in the familiar pale blue uniform.

Dixen quickly pulled a few more bits to preserve them and then laid them on the desk. Without a second thought he left the room and ordered that no one was allowed in the room except himself and Colonel Williams.

The men saluted and blocked the door.

Dixen ordered, "You two go on ahead. Check every room. But don't touch anything. If you find 'anything' of interest call me first. You know the drill."

"Sir, yes sir." Both young men, barely in their twenties answered. They were loyal to the core.

He nodded his satisfaction and headed back outside to his commanding officer. He was not going to like this at all. Walking back to the hanger, he knew how delicate this operation was. But it had just gotten worse.

Luckily, Colonel Williams was always at least three steps ahead of everyone else. He wanted to keep communications to a minimum, knowing the FBI and Interpol would be listening in on all their radio transmissions. He had ordered them to keep radio silence, except for 'normal' communication.

International Rescue still had some friends, whether they knew it or not. And Colonel Williams and his team were high on that list.

TBTBTB

Thunderbird One's pilot laughed loudly, as he flew away from the destruction he'd just caused his rivals. He never intended killing the men, especially when he saw they had cameras.

So he made sure they got enough shots, as he fired the weapons around them.

He changed his heading back towards Tracy Island, knowing he was being tracked by Thunderbird Five. But what did he care? He had almost everything he wanted. He was going to enjoy every second of it.

He opened a channel, "Thunderbird One calling Base. I'm coming in to land."

Tin-tin answered him, doubtfully. "Um…Scott? This is base. No one else is here. I'll open the pool for you now. How are you?"

The fake Scott answered happily. "Never better! Hungry. Lay out a spread for a king little lady, I'm coming in!"

He mussed to himself, 'so they keep them under the Island. Interesting. Well, who would believe my luck, I come all the way out here, and there is no welcoming party. Looks like I will have to give them one instead.'

He saw the pool below him slide open, and he hovered over it before making his first attempt at landing the sleek rocket-jet. Slowly the nose rose upwards as the tail sank down. Now vertical, Thunderbird One went upwards instead. "Oops!" laughed the Hood, before pressing the handles the other way, just a little too quickly.

Thunderbird One changed direction and plunged downwards. She was going too fast and even though he switched on the VTOL's, it was just a little too late.

With an enormous scraping of metal, and a crushing sound that echoed alarmingly around the Island, Thunderbird One came to a sudden stop as she hit the metal platform at the bottom, effectively crushing the boosters into the lift platform.

Sighing in satisfaction, he undid the safety belt and climbed out the chair, heading for the door.

He was going to make himself at home. He would await Jeff Tracy in the luxury of his own home.

TBTBTB

The doctors and nurses in surgery were anxiously performing their medical miracles on one very ill young man.

His life hung in their skilled hands as they tried to keep him from death's door and remove the bullet from within his shoulder blade.

Scott Tracy was in good hands.

Not that he knew it. He was in a dark place of his own. He drifted along in what can only be described as a long river, feelings of confusion and pain washed over him as he felt like he was being washed away, closer and closer to the abyss in the appearance of a black sea.

It beckoned him, calling him not to fight against the current pulling him closer. He drifted along, not sure where he was, or even who he was. He had lost touch with everything but the swaying movement he felt in his unconscious state.

A wave washed over him, making him gasp. He tried to struggle against the heavy liquid as he felt himself go under. He found he couldn't breathe. His arms and legs felt heavy, he could not move them, as much as he struggled. He instinctively tried to get some air into his lungs, but that did not work. He felt himself sinking deeper in to the depths below. His eyes closing to the darkness around him. He began to give up the fight to live.

Then suddenly, he felt himself shoot upward. An electric charge surged through his body, but still he could not get in any air. His already hazy world began to blend and meld with his being as the Sea came closer and closer. He ignored the chance to fight, and settled back down into the depths of liquid.

Then he felt the surge through his body again, and again.

It was enough to give him a wake-up call.

He broke the surface of the black liquid and took in a lung full of air, only to let it out again in a scream of pain.

TBTBTB

In the Intensive Care room, the surgeons worked hard, but were not surprised when their patient's monitors flat-lined.

"He's gone into arrest! Start compressions!" The sSurgeon ordered. "Sue, get that machine over here now!"

The nurse turned and wheeled the large machine over, and turned it on, ready in case they had to use it. She watched as her teammates tried to resuscitate the pale, dark haired man, but to no avail.

Knowing they didn't have long the surgeon stopped and called Sue over.

"Okay everyone, stand clear."

They all backed away. He nodded at Sue and she moved into place, shouting "Clear," before touching the man with the plates that shot a charge of controlled electric pulses into his chest.

His body jerked upwards, they all looked at the monitor on the wall.

Nothing, just a straight line.

The surgeon nodded at her. Sighing she quickly repeated the action.

"Clear!"

Once again the man's body jerked up off the bed, and they all were glued to the screen, a slight ripple moved on the line. "Again!" The surgeon called out loudly, in hope.

Sue's heart was thumping in her chest, as she called "Clear."

This time there was a larger rise in the green line as it spiked suddenly, and then after a brief moment, the line became a definite pulse of a heart beating. They all cheered, and Sue let out the breath she had not realised she had been holding onto.

"Well done everyone." The surgeon congratulated his team, "Let's get him sewn up. It's been a long night."

The staff fluttered into action.

No-one noticed the monitor that showed his brain waves had started to go crazy, then as suddenly as it did, the wild lines calmed down to give the appearance of sleep.

The surgeon exited the room and removed his gloves and headgear, before grabbing a drink of water from the plastic bottle next to his locker. Running his powdered white hand through his greying hair, leaving flecks of white powder in it, he then washed his hands so they became tanned once more.

Taking a quick look at his tired expression, he left the room to go and report to the man's worried family on his condition.

TBTBTB

So there ends another chapter... ducks behind the chair, please don't hurt me!!! I'm nice, I really am!!!

Got this one up as promised, under a week, phew.

We'll see about the next part, depends on how nice you all are to me ;-)

THANK YOU EVERYONE for your reviews...see they worked!!!

To anon - Was it really that long since I updated?? Sorry!! And no, I would not put them through it ALL again. I have other things in store for them (grins evilly!!!) And you are right, I can't seem to help myself with those little cliffies, they just seem to happen!!

Bluegrass - I'm glad you spotted 'Caspian's' identity, you were supposed to think that!!! Well done!!! ;-)

To - Everyone else. I hope this has 'answered' some of your questions..?!?!

Keep letting me know if I'm going over the top, I can get carried away sometimes. And I know whats happening, so I forget that you guys don't !!!! Oops!!!

Hob x


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

The Tracy clan were contained in a small room back in the main part of the hospital. John was sitting in a hard plastic chair, one arm held protectively across his sore stomach as he watched his father continue his marathon of pacing across the room. He flicked a glance of his pale blue eyes over at his ginger haired brother, who was unusually quiet.

Gordon lent back against a wall, his sharp eyes on the door as if he expected someone to come in with news of his brother at any moment. Gordon's thoughts wondered back to the close call of nearly losing Virgil to the people who kidnapped Scott……

……His yell had startled them, and scared them off. He, John and his dad had got to Virgil just in time. Virgil greeted them with joy, not fully understanding the real reason they came charging over to see him. He proceeded to introduce his Doctor to them.

"Hi guys! You took your time getting here! This is my fab Doctor. Sandra, this is my family." He smiled at them all, not noticing the hesitant atmosphere, he was feeling very happy suddenly and light headed. He was safe, now his family were here. He shut his eyes once again.

"Any news on Scott yet, Dad?" Virgil asked expectantly, looking at his father, who in turn was eyeing his middle son with concern at seeing his battered face and tired expression.

Jeff frowned. "No son. We just got here, and barely in time it seems." He looked pointedly at Sandra, who smiled a grateful look at him.

"I'm sure glad you found us. I thought that man was going to hurt your son. Thank you." She turned her gaze to John with gratitude written all over her face. "Attacking innocent people like that, he needs to be locked up," she added for good measure. Wolf was going down, and he was not going to take her down with him.

John was suddenly uncertain that she had anything to do with an attempted kidnapping, he began to wonder what Wolf was up to. He looked at his father for direction.

"And he will." Jeff's deep voice rumbled out to her. She nodded and smiled, she started to push Virgil back towards the hospital, the Tracy men at her side. Like Virgil, she felt strangely safe. "Come on." She said, unnecessarily to them.

Gordon walked slightly ahead of the others, next to Virgil's side. "So bro, what were you doing out here anyway…I thought we…, you were left in A and E?"

Virgil keeping his eyes closed in tiredness, answered quietly. "Sandra was moving me from my fans." A small smile playing on his lips.

Gordon frowned.

John raised his eye-brows, coping the facial expression of his father. Jeff whispered in Sandra's ear as they walked, "Is he doped up?" She nodded at him, a bigger smile crossing her face.

Jeff and John caught each others eye and gave a knowing nod. Virgil always had a very loose tongue when given certain medication. They waited to hear how he would string his younger brother along.

"What fans? Since when did you become a celebrity?" Gordon fired back almost instantly. Gordon liked the attention himself, but what could be so special about Virgil, he wondered. He also knew Virgil hated any attention, he did not like the limelight.

Sandra answered for him as his head began to nod, "It was his taxi here that caught peoples attention. For some reason, International Rescue is full of handsome young men, and everyone wants a piece of them. A bit like the Chippendales, I guess. The entire nursing staff went crazy. Seeing how Virgil got up close to them, the hospital has been bombarded by over-excited, and very persistent reporters trying to find out more about them."

Gordon grinned at this, as did John and Jeff. If only they knew!

Sandra never saw the smiles. They made their way to another part of the hospital. She had wisely got a bed reserved for him in the Minor Head Injury Ward, before she'd initially moved him.

"This is your new prison cell .. sorry, I mean safe holding!" Virgil grinned at her, waking up to the coolness of the room, and briefly glanced at his brothers to see their reaction.

Back in the waiting room, Gordon rolled his eyes as he remembered the teasing that John and Virgil bestowed upon him after the Doctor left, with a promise of sending someone over to bring them up to date with Virgil's other brother's condition.

She made her way to Intensive Care….

……That thought was in Gordon's head when the door suddenly opened to reveal the surgeon who had been operating on Scott.

They had been waiting for hours. It was late night now. The hustle and bustle of the hospitals day life slowed to a gentle buzz. They were told to leave Virgil to rest, and shown to this room. No one spoke since being left there.

John quickly stood up from his chair, wincing a little from the movement. He was getting stiff from sitting still for so long. Gordon pushed himself away from the wall and stood to Jeff's left, John took up position on Jeff's right. It was automatic for them to stand together. In numbers they were strong.

Tracys stood together. Jeff was proud to have the support of his sons at his side.

The surgeon held out his hand to Jeff and introduced himself. "Hi Mr Tracy. I'm Dr Kent, Brody Kent. I've just finished operating on your son, Scott. He's just come out of surgery. I won't lie to you Mr Tracy, but it was close call in there."

Gordon sucked in his breath, John held on to his, while Jeff instantly started to ask questions. "How is he? When can we see him? How long before he comes around?"

Brody Kent held up his hands to ward off the questions. "Easy there, sir. He won't be waking up tonight. You can have 5 minutes with him, but that's all I'm afraid. He's not out of the woods yet. I'm sorry." He added sympathetically.

John got in the next question before his father could. "Did you get the bullet out? Is he going to be able to use his arm again?" All the faces in the room were concerned.

"You need to understand that Scott has been through a lot of trauma. He was shot, and slashed by a knife. The extent of his injuries show that he has also been strangled at some point, not to mention the bruising that covers his body. Now do any of you know how he might have sustained these wounds?"

For the first time in his life Jeff felt like someone had shot him in the gut. He suddenly went cold all over and his knees went weak.

The surgeon recognised the signs, having seen the reaction far too many times in his career, quickly moved forwards. But John and Gordon were way ahead of him, and they eased their father down on the chair that John had just vacated.

"I'm sorry, Mr Tracy. But I also have to inform you that your son, Scott, arrested in surgery. We managed to get him back, but it was close. We did remove the bullet, it luckily missed both his Scapula and the Clavicle bones. But he also lost a lot of blood. He's lucky International Rescue know what they're doing. They saved his life." He paused to take a breath. "He is going to need a lot of care and support over the next few weeks and months." He sighed, hating to be the barer of bad news. "If you find out anything at all about how Scott came to be in this … condition, to help us, to help him, please let me know."

He moved forward and rested a hand on Gordon's shoulder, giving him a gentle squeeze of reassurance. "If there is anything any of you need, please just let one of the nurses know. We are doing all we can, Mr Tracy. Only time will tell. Keep your fingers crossed."

He stood straight and walked over to the door, turning he quietly said, "I'll send a nurse in to get you when you can see Scott, he's being settled in to Intensive Care as we speak." With that he left, closing the door gently behind him.

The room had a heavy silence fall over it as the door clicked shut.

Each lost within his own thoughts.

TBTBTB

6 Hours earlier 

Parker and Wolf faced off on the stairway.

The older, grey-haired thief stood above the younger, blond-haired man. They stared at each other in silence as the sounds of the security guards got louder as they ran up the stairs.

Wolf made his move. "Look, Parker right?" He started hesitantly, "I did not get Nix shot. You shot him, I was trying to get us out of there! I could have got away if I wanted too. Why would I come back inside the hospital? I'm on your side! John knew that, he believes me, and you should too!"

The voices and footfalls got louder, but Wolf ignored them, seeing the look of guilt flashing once again across the old man's face. He took a step up, closer. "I've been trying to escape them for months. When I found out about the plot…." They were close now. He spoke faster. "Look, let's go somewhere, I'll explain everything to you. Can you take the risk that they go free?"

Parker narrowed his eyes as he thought it through.

Then without saying a thing, he grabbed Wolf and pulled him up the last few steps and they disappeared down the corridor to where Parker knew his beautiful boss would be.

He held the young man close, his gun hidden in his pocket, poking Wolf in the side. "H'if you make but h'one wrong move laddie, it'll be your last." Parker threatened. He was going to find out if he was really one of the bad guys. While his friends were still in danger, Parker would keep fighting for them. And while Wolf and his 'partners' were still at large, he had no choice but to hear him out.

TBTBTB

Alan was not amused.

He was stuck up on Thunderbird Five, on his own, while his brothers got to be with Scott, and have all the excitement.

In his young mind, that was totally unfair. He sat at the control panel waiting for news. He'd gotten bored and irritated by the media broad casts, so he had switched them all off.

He drummed his fingers across the panel in frustration. The other hand he brought to his lips, and slipped his fingers into his mouth. Without thinking what he was doing, he slipped back into the old childhood habit of biting his nails.

He jumped when another signal went off. He had been informing their agents on what had been going on periodically when they called in. Here was just another well-wisher, he thought.

He answered the call.

"International Rescue receiving you."

The voice came across the speaker made him sit up in his seat. "Thunderbird Five." The voice was strong, and full of command. "I have commandeered unsettling evidence against you. Damn it! It links you directly, and suggests a strong connection between you and the terrorists."

Alan gasped, and stuttered back. "W..What? H..how? Who is this?"

The voice snorted. "Agent 12 here son. Why in hell's name did you boys leave that damn machine on it's own anyway? Where is the old Dog, huh? Tell him I need to speak to him ASAP. On a secure line. Got that lad?"

Alan was shocked to say the least. "Sure. I'll get word to him…."

"You do that. I'll be waiting. Agent 12 out."

"FAB." He answered, but the man had already hung up. Even more worried now, Alan pressed a few button to reach a secure line to his fathers phone.

He waited impatiently while it rang.

TBTBTB

Parker drove FAB One swiftly back towards the hanger in LA. His passengers were having a serious discussion in the back. He tried not to listen, but he couldn't help himself.

He had promised himself that he would not let the man escape. He would protect the Tracys with his life, if need be.

"…and that's how I ended up working for Vixen. My brother died, and I wanted to take down the man who shot him." Wolf put his face in his hands, and Penny put a comforting hand on his knee. He looked back up at her with eyes shining unshed tears.

"We will do all we can to help you, Mr Wolf. But it does not look good for you. You have assisted in abducting an International Rescue Agent, not only that, but you are part of a terrorist group threatening the world." She paused to let her words sink in. She caught Parkers eye in the front mirror, and gently gave him a wink. "I'm not sure if you are even telling the truth, seeing you are such a good actor, or if you have an ulterior motive!"

Wolf sat up suddenly at that and frowned. "You don't believe my younger brother died! Phoenix was my life, I would do anything for him. He was a good kid. He joined the medical college, was top of his class! Then he fell in love," He spat out angrily.

"Stupidest thing he ever did. She got herself into some kind of trouble, and my brother paid the ultimate price." He ran an agitated hand through his honey blond hair. "When Nix, your friend, took the bullet meant for me,"

He looked sharply at Parker.

"It took me right back to the moment my brother died." His breathing had gotten faster, his eyes were darting around within his closed eyelids as he tried to explain.

"When Nix was laying on the floor, pale, still, bleeding. I knew it was a sign. He was the one who would be my salvation. Not only does he look like Phoenix, but he is brave and …. I'm not bad. I, ..I just need, oh God, I need help. Please!" A tear fell down his face as he was pulled back into his own memories.

Parker glanced in his mirror once again, this time he was scowling. He did not want to feel sorry for this man. But by the look in Penny's eyes, she did.

"We're nearly there Mi-lady." He announced.

"Very good Parker. You can come with me." She turned to look at Wolf, "Mr Wolf, you may stay in the car. Kindly do not touch anything. Do not try to escape, because it will just try my patience."

He nodded and looked out the window, gasping when he saw just how many FBI agents and dark clothed SWAT teams there were. He swallowed hard and answered "Sure."

She smiled, even if he could get out the car, he would not get far.

Parker pulled to a stop next to a large tent. He got out and opened the door of the pink car for Penelope to climb out.

He glared a warning at Wolf, who shrunk back into the leather seat, before shutting the door.

Penny walked over to a powerfully built man, about the same age as Jeff. In fact they looked very similar, in presence, and commanded respect with out saying anything.

He held out his hand "Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward, damn it! You sure are a pretty little thing ain't you!" He boomed as he took her delicate hand in his, smiling at her, "Agent 12 at your service," he whispered as he placed a kiss on it before letting her take it back. She smiled at him.

"Colonel Williams, I presume. A pleasure to finally meet you. Jeff speaks very highly of your friendship."

He laughed out loud, "Ha! The old dog, damn him! Bet he ain't told you everything! Got a tale or two myself! So how are those strapping lads of his?"

Parker cleared his throat, the FBI agents were looking their way, and whispering into their radios.

"Let's take this inside. Damn those boys! Sergeant, no-one is to go into that tunnel unless I say, understood?"

The smart man near by saluted and followed them back as they walked into the hangar. He placed himself and three others across the entrance.

"We can talk freely in here," he told them as they walked into the now well-lit Hanger. "Damn FBI and Interpol boys think they know everything! Damn them all! They just want to be better than us. Corrupt, the lot of them! So I take it you found Scott. He's a strong lad, he'll be fine."

Penny and Parker walked at his side.

"So what did you find? Why did you need us to come out here?" she asked curiously, deciding not to comment on Scott. They walked towards the room where Penny and Parker had been held.

"Well Lady, we've gotta give those boys out there what we find. And we found some mighty incriminating evidence. Jeff needs to be very worried. You know as well as I do that secrecy is of top importance, damn it. Well, International Rescue is no longer safe! One of my lads found these. "

He opened the door and Penny swore when she spotted the papers on the table.

"Oh how bothersome!"

TBTBTB

To Be Continued ...

Thank you again for your wonderful reviews :-) See, they are working, this is the 3rd chapter out in just over a week!!! Want more?? You know what to do ;-)

Hob x


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

Sat alone, up in space, Alan Tracy cut off communication with Tin-tin on Tracy Island.

He ran an agitated hand through his thick blond hair, letting out a sigh of relief. Thunderbird One was home, safe and sound. Not unscathed, by the sound of it, but he knew once his older brothers got back, Brains would have them working on it.

He let out a small smile as he imagined the look on his father's face when he got home to find out what Tin-tin, Brains, Kyrano and his Grandma had done.

He had to admit, it was funny. He gave a small laugh as he thought about what Tin-tin had told him, it took some of the strain of the last week away from his tired face.

As he pondered how they managed it, the control console alerted him to an incoming transmission.

It was Gordon. "Hey Al, how's it going up there?" His voice had a false cheerfulness to it, and it sounded awkward even to Alan's ears.

"Busy. Lots of 'well-wishers', you know the drill." He paused and there was an uncomfortable silence. "Gord's, I'm sorry for my…um…outburst at you earlier.."

Gordon cut him off. "Forget it squirt. I have already. Look, Dad wanted me to call you, bring you up to date. Scott's out of surgery. They think he's going to be fine…."

Alan could not contain the grin, and beamed at his partner in crime. "That's great Gords! When are you guys bringing him home…?" His voice faded out as he looked at Gordon's face. "What's wrong? He is coming home, isn't he?"

Alan was scared now. Gordon blinked at the small wrist watch communicator. "Yes. Just not yet. The World Police want to talk to him before he leaves, and the fucking FBI and Interpol…. They have reason to believe he was involved in the terrorist attacks….God, it's a mess here Al."

Alan jumped in before Gordon could finish. "But…but, I spoke to Agent 12, Penny's with him now! They'll sort it out! They will…"

"Alan stop! Look, it's not that easy. Whatever happened in those tunnels, whoever this 'group' is, they have powerful friends. For some reason, they want Scott. But we won't let them get their hands on him again. I promise." He sighed and looked behind him at something Alan could not see. "I've got to go. Keep listening Al, hear anything you think we should know about, call me. Got that?"

"FAB. Good luck. Oh, and tell Dad not to worry about TB1. She's back home. Alan out."

"She is? How? No don't answer that." He shook his head in puzzlement, "Yeah okay, I'll tell him. Speak to you later, kid."

TBTBTB

Tracy Island – 2 hours earlier 

Tin-tin looked up at Brains as the swimming pool opened. "That was not Scott," she simply said as their eyes met.

"I would …ha..have to agree." Brains confirmed.

Before Jeff left, he had pre-warned them of his suspicions, and they had made plans to capture and hold the fake 'Scott' until Jeff himself got back with the other 'Scott'. They had to be very careful.

Then Alan called, pre-warning them that Thunderbird One was heading their way. He told them to be careful, just in case it was not Scott. Alan still had his doubts, no matter what his older brothers said.

So it was no surprise to those remaining on Tracy Island when permission was requested to land. In fact, it was just what they wanted. Thunderbird One, safely hidden back at base. Unable to inflict any more damage to International Rescue's already precarious position, or injuries to anyone else.

They heard the sleek rocket plane approach and Tin-tin left Brains to find her father while she headed down towards the lounge to greet the new arrival.

She jumped as Thunderbird One landed, rather roughly, the sound echoing around the Island. She cringed at the thought of damage it must have caused.

Tin-tin was standing next to Jeff's desk when the wall swung around to produce a beaming Scott Tracy. He stepped into the room with a stance of power. It seemed to radiate off him. Tin-tin could feel the energy flowing towards her. Instantly she knew who it was standing there. And there was no doubt at all in her mind at all, that it was not the oldest Tracy sibling.

"Scott! Welcome back! We've missed you, are you injured?" She threw the questions at him before he could speak. "You must be hungry, Mrs Tracy has made your favourite. Come on, she's been dying to see you back safe and sound!"

She grabbed his arm, and towed him out the room, down towards the kitchen. He was surprised, but also happy that his disguise had not been uncovered, he let her lead the way. He would have some fun with Jeff's servants while he waited.

"Yes my dear, I am hungry. Where is my … father?" He asked the young Malaysian girl. He glanced about him as he walked, taking in the modern appearance of the house. It was high-tech, but not over the top. He thought that Jeff would have lived in a bit more luxury than this, and then he let out a sigh. Jeff was too much of a military man to warrant the 'good' things in life.

But then, he did spend his fortune on those blasted Thunderbirds and helping people. He would never see why the man would stoop so low to help people below him.

Jeff was a disgrace, as far as he was concerned, and he'd ruined his sons as well. As they walked Scott's face turned into a sneer. It was that moment that Tin-tin risked a glance at the familiar face.

"What's wrong Scott? Are you in pain?" she said with fake concern. She prayed her acting skills she learnt at school would pay off.

They did.

"I was having a. ..moment. It's been a while since I was here…where are we going?" He was laughing inside, this was so easy!

Tin-tin frowned at him, "Why Scott, we are going to the kitchen. You said you were hungry. Maybe we should go to the medical bay first, and get Brain's to take a look at you?"

"No!" He said just a bit too loudly and quickly, "No. Let's just eat. I'm sure I will remember as we go."

Tin-tin smiled, genuinely this time. "Of course Scott. We are nearly there. Mmm, can you smell that! Grandma's made your favourite!"

The hood inhaled deeply, then stopped and pulled his nose up in disgust. "What is that awful stench?" He sniffed again, "Something's burning." He exclaimed.

"Burning? Oh no, Scott, it always smell's like that. You must have forgotten!" Tin-tin walked into the kitchen, hardly able to contain the grin that threatened to burst on to her face.

"Scott's back, Mrs Tracy," she informed the old woman, who was busy cooking. "He's very hungry." She carried on walking and went out the kitchen door on the other side saying "I must check on Gordon's fish for him. See you later Scott. Enjoy your snack!" She went out, leaving 'Scott' and Grandma Tracy alone in the kitchen.

"Sit down, young man! No, wash your hands first, you know better than that, young man!" She reprimanded him, making him stop in his tracks in shock. But she ignored the look on his face, "Scott Carpenter Tracy, you will do as you are told. Wash your hands!"

The Hood continued to glare at the old woman, but she had already turned her back on him, and returned to the table with a covered plate.

"Come on. No grandson of mine will ever catch any nasty viruses from bad cleanliness. Especially after flying those dirty machines."

He scowled, not wanting to blow his cover just yet, and complied by washing his hands. Outside the door, Tin-tin held her hand over her mouth to suppress a giggle.

She waited until the Hood was seated before going off to meet her father and Brains.

"Good boy!" Grandma fondly ruffled his hair with her wrinkled hand, "You are such a good boy Scott. Your father is proud of you, now you must keep your strength up, Brians needs to give you the usual check up in a few minutes."

She took the lid off the plate, and held her own nose at the smell. It really was horrible. "Eat up my boy. You don't have long!"

With that she too left the kitchen, but went out the door he and Tin-tin had come in. She really needed some air, she waved her hand in front of her face as she walked, a wicked smile playing on her face.

The Hood sat in disbelief as he stared at his plate. He gagged, eyes watering. The longer he smelt it, and looked at the thing called 'food' it became almost too much for the evil man to stomach. No way was he going to touch it. He felt sick.

Getting up abruptly, he headed out the door after Tin-tin, hoping to find the way out into the garden.

He almost ran through the door, and down the steps. He did not know where everyone had gone. He passed a few doors, but they were all locked. He kept walking and trying all the doors he passed, until finally, one handle twisted under his hand.

"At last." He groaned. He pushed it open and walked in. "I'll get that old bat for that rubbish, no-one could eat that stuff!" He said to himself out loud.

To his surprise, Brains answered him. "A…are you not hungry S..Scott?" He poked his head out from behind a desk. "I..I..I'll give you something for..it." He stood up and walked towards the Hood, a large syringe with a long, thick needle attached to it. "It….it…won't hurt…w…well, not..m..much." He stuttered to Scott as he waved it in front of him. "It has t..to.. go in the…r….rear..end, t..turn around…p..please!"

The Hoods eyes widened in horror. "You're crazy!" He blurted out as he backed out the door. Brains kept walking forwards trying to get him to come back. If the Hood had looked behind him in his flight, he would have seen a very amused man.

"It's all down to you ..n..now Kyrano." He spoke into his wrist watch.

"Of course Mister Hackenbacker. I can see him approaching now. My daughter tells me she is also ready. Mrs Tracy is in place. Are you on your way?"

"Y..yes," he answered as he put the tranquilliser gun in his pocket.

He followed the steps taken by 'Scott' out into the pool area. Grandma Tracy was standing in front of the man, her rolling pin in one hand and a glass of milk in the other. Brains overheard her saying, "Drink your milk up, young man. You need all your strength. Here you are!" She forced the glass into the mans hands and put her hands on her hips as she glared at him, challenging him to challenge her.

Just then Brains came out and called, "Scott, s..stop running a…away….you..need this injection!"

The Hood turned, panic in his eyes when he caught sight of the needle again. "Don't come any closer!" he ordered, his voice back to normal, he could take no more of this mad-house. "I am in control here. You are all prisoners of The Hood, hahaha!" He pulled the mask from his face and his eyes began to glow red. Brains face instantly went blank and he dropped the syringe on the floor.

The Hood was about to turn when something hard whacked him on his head. He was felled to the ground. It was then Mrs Tracy noticed not one, but two darts protruding from his chest.

Tin-tin stood up from her hiding place. "Looks like he was mistaken!"

Kyrano also stood up from his hiding place in the bushes. "Indeed daughter. My brother has finally shown himself. Mrs Tracy, is your rolling pin alright?"

The old woman was studying the wood closely. "No, it has a dent in it. I shall have to go to the mainland to replace it. But it was a sacrifice worth making!" she added with a smile.

"Let's secure him somewhere. Then we can monitor him from upstairs. But where shall we put him?" Tin-tin asked, looking from her father to Mrs Tracy, and then at Brains.

"I know…." And the group grinned in agreement.

TBTBTB

Virgil was sleeping soundly, thanks to the medication he'd been given. Gordon was left with him, just so he was not on his own. Not after what had happened.

Gordon was exhausted, and he sunk lower in the chair next to Virgil's bed. Slowly his eyes drifted shut and his head dropped on to his chest. Soft snores filled the room, both brothers having succumbed to sleep.

A shadow of a slim figure appeared at the door and silently opened it a crack. Seeing the sleeping men, the figure closed the door and walked away.

TBTBTB

John accompanied his father to visit Scott.

They followed the nurse into the Intensive Care room. It was bright, and very clean. Its whiteness had such a cold clinical feel to it. Not to mention the wires and machines bleeping and flashing everywhere.

Both their eyes fell on Scott at the same time, and it took all Jeff's resolve not to rush over to his eldest son, whom he had not seen for what felt like forever, and pick him up and hug him.

Instead he just froze. Unable to move, and stared.

The first thing he noticed were the bruises on his sons face, then as his vision drifted down his son's body, checking and calculating the injuries that had been inflicted with his own eyes. He swallowed hard at the sight of the red finger marks on Scott's neck.

Next he took in the bandaging across his chest and the large patch of white covering his shoulder. He frowned as he saw the drips attached to Scott's unbandaged arm and the pale and stillness of his boy.

He swallowed again, and John touched his arm to move him forward. Woodenly, his legs moved him across to the side of the bed. John never said a thing, but stood silently at his side.

Slowly Jeff lifted his hand and gently pushed his shaking fingers through Scott's dark hair. "Looks like I've drunk too much coffee," he whispered to Scott as he tried unsuccessfully to stop the shakes. "I guess it's time you had a good sleep though, and it'll help you get better so you can come home, son." He tried to lighten the mood for both his and John's sake.

He felt John rest one of hands on his shoulder, and with the other he held on to Scott's nearest hand and gently squeezed it, as if the pressure would give his brother support. He wanted Scott to know they were there, waiting for him.

"Rest easy son. We'll be here when you wake up." And he continued to stroke his eldest son's head as he used to when he was a baby to help soothe him to get him to sleep when he was ill.

He closed his eyes as a tear slipped out. Whether it was one of sadness or relief, only Jeff knew. But now all they could do was wait for him to open his eyes.

If he had looked at John, he would have seen anger underneath the bright blue eyes. Someone was going to pay for putting his family through this, and John was not going to rest until he had found them and put a stop to this threat.

TBTBTB

"Don't you dare speak to me like that Caspian!" Weasel growled at his youngest daughter. "You took the wrong man! Now we have to change all our plans for your blunder."

Vixen rolled her eyes, "'and me ze phone!" she demanded of the older man. He passed it over without saying a word. "Caspian, 'as Wolf contacted you since?"

"No. And I won't talk to him either! This is his, and your fault, so stop trying to drag me down with you! I told you when, … when 'he' died, that was it. The end. No more Vixen, I'm a doctor, and a damn good one. I studied years for this and you won't take it away from me. I'm not getting involved!" She almost shouted down the phone.

Vixen smiled cruelly. "You already are involved Caspian. You provided us with 'ze drugs. You're in over your head. If we go down, z'hen you're coming with uz." She spoke calmly and coldly into the mouthpiece. "Besides, do you z'ink General Bron will let you off ze 'ook?"

Caspian was silent, but heavy breathing down the line was answer enough.

"Good. Keep an eye on things at ze 'ospital. We will call you soon."

Caspian was left with her mouth left open, the steady drone in a buzz coming through the earpiece of her mobile let her know that Vixen had hung up on her.

TBTBTB

"Damn it Dixen! Who leaked this out to them? Find the rat and eliminate him! Damn!" He swung away from the younger man and in a rage of temper, he punched his fist on to the desk.

"Sir, yes sir!" The young man saluted and quickly left the room. Penny and Parker were just as disturbed.

"They have no 'hard' evidence out there yet do they?" Penny enquired; cautiously getting the angry mans attention. Betrayal etched on his strong features. "They may have come from another source, not from one of your men Colonel."

Parker whispered something in her ear.

"What did you say man? No secrets in here! No sir! Damn it, speak man!" The Colonel demanded respect and loyalty from his troops. Never had any of them ever crossed him. He was shocked and angry.

Penny nodded at him to do as Colonel Williams ordered. He cleared his throat first. "Well sir, I figured, that if they have no evidence, they cannot prove anything." He glanced at the burnt bin. "H'if you get my meaning…Sir."

Colonel Williams narrowed his eyes. "You're saying we destroy the evidence? Damn it man. I told you, I can't, not even for Jeff, they would know…"

Then Penny clicked her fingers and both men looked at her. "I do believe I have the answer, to solve all problems gentlemen. There does seems to be a frightfully large amount of combustable fuel in here." She looked quickly at Parker, "You say you cannot destroy evidence Colonel, well we cannot smuggle it out either. You say no-one except you and Lt Dixen has seen these, so either Lt Dixen is a traitor," she paused, "Or you are." She accused him openly.

She waited for the explosion to come.

TBTBTB

Alan was asleep in bed when the News Broadcasters went into a frenzy about the explosion. Not everyone escaped, it was a disaster.

The Media were calling for International Rescue to come and help. It was plainly obvious to everyone, that unless the heroes came out of hiding to help, the people trapped would die.

The FBI and Interpol were wanting to see if the accused would dare to show their faces.

Alan slept on.

TBTBTB

To Be Continued...


	22. Chapter 22

******Chapter 22 **

Penny and Parker made their way down the corridor, neither looking at each other, or anything else as they ran. Parker's heart raced inside his chest. He felt sick with fear, not something he had felt very often before, the first time he felt real fear was when he thought he had killed Scott Tracy. This time it was because he thought they wouldn't get out in time before the explosion.

The sacrifice Colonel Williams was making, not just with his life, but with the lives of the people under his command, was suicidal. Parker swallowed hard as he saw the light at the end of the cursed tunnel. Penny grabbed his arm as she felt the first wave of the explosion coming from inside. Without knowing why, she just started to scream.

The officers outside all looked in their direction, Penny's scream alerting them that something was wrong. The blast of the explosion overtook them, throwing them out of the tunnel and to the ground. The people closest to the entrance were knocked over by the after-shock, some lucky others were quick enough to duck behind things to avoid being hit by flying bits of rock and metal.

The rumbling sound echoed around them as the tunnel shook from the blast, then the whole tunnel collapsed, locking any one who may have survived inside the tunnel like a sealed tomb.

As the dusk settled, there was an eerie silence.

Then all hell let loose as the rescue began in military style. The only problem was, the person with the experience to give the right orders was still inside the tunnel. The other people who could help them were otherwise engaged, and to be arrested on sight. If called, would International Rescue come?

Penny lifted her head up, blood seeping down the side of her face from where she had landed. She looked back at the tunnel. Closing her eyes, she sent a whispered prayer for those who had given their lives for the sake of International Rescue.

Parker reached out a shaking hand to touch her shoulder. "Mi-lady...h'are you alright?" She gently shook her head, no. Just then the medics got to them, and took them away from the scene. Penny became oblivious to it all as dizziness over took her and she passed out.

Parker had fortunately managed to escape injury and he watched as they carried her away. He turned away from the madness behind him and trudged back to the now dusty pink car.

As he got closer he could see Wolf watching with shock written all over his face. Parker scowled at him through the window, before getting into the front of the car.

Wolf started to speak, before Parker harshly said "Don't say a word. Not if you value your life."

He never even looked at the younger man. Instead, he opened a channel to Alan on Thunderbird Five.

TBTBTB

Gordon opened bleary eyes to catch a wisp of pale blond hair appear from behind the door which quietly opened from outside the darkened room. He smiled as he stretched his limbs cramped from sleeping in the chair.

John returned the smile with a weaker one of his own. This did not escape Gordon, and he stood up and motioned to the door. They moved outside so they didn't wake Virgil up, who was sleeping peacefully on the hospital bed.

"What's up?" He asked, concerned by his older brothers behaviour. "Is Scott awake yet? How's Dad taking it?"

John studied Gordon's face before answering his question. Sighing he replied "No, Scott's still out of it. Dad, well Dad is just as you'd expect him to be I guess," he paused as he looked back at the door where Vigil was sleeping. "I thought you might need a break from keeping an eye on sleeping beauty. Do you need a pit-stop or anything? Dad's orders. No-one is to be left on their own till we get back home." His voice took a tone that almost sent shiver down Gordon's back.

"Nah, I'm good." He put a hand on John's shoulder, "John, are you alright?"

John shock his head. "Hell no. I won't be alright until Scott, Virgil, you, me and Dad are all back home, and those bastards that did this are either locked up or dead." He pushed open the door to see Virgil showing signs of waking. "I prefer dead," he added quietly, but Gordon heard him anyway.

John shrugged off Gordon's hand and went to sit down in the chair next to Virgil's bed that Gordon had just vacated. It was still warm. John reached out a hand and put it on his brother's chest. Leaning in he whispered "Hey Virg, it's time to wake up bro. Come on, open those eyes for me. It's time for you to go home."

Gordon stayed frozen to the spot just outside the room. Did he hear John correctly? He hoped to God that he was wrong, but he couldn't bring it up now, not with Virgil waking up.

Virgil's eye lids started to move as his brain began to process his thoughts together. Gradually his eyes fluttered open and he spotted John next to him. "Hey." He acknowledged, his voice gruff from sleep. He slowly sat up as John passed him a glass of water from the table at the side of the bed.

"Here. What's this I hear about you chatting up all the pretty nurses and doctors? Bro, you really must learn to control those pent up feelings." Virgil gulped a few mouthfuls of water before spluttering it out over the bed and on John.

"Gross!" Gordon called from the door, and taking John's lead on the situation, he tried to lighten the situation for Virgil's sake. "Yeah Virg, you really have a thing for that doctor, don't you! What was her name again John? Sandy, Sara, oh yeah, Sandra. Cute Virg, very cute."

Virgil looked from John to Gordon in horror. "What did I do? What did I say? Oh no..." Groaning, he closed his eyes as the said doctor walked into the room.

"How's my favourite prisoner today?" Caspian inquired cheerfully, giving Gordon a wink as Virgil blushed bright red. Gordon grinned.

He grabbed John and pulled him out of the room, "Let's leave the good doctor to torture Virg on her own. She won't need any help from us!" Giving Caspian a wink as he passed her.

John let a smile escape when he saw Virgil try to stop them leaving with a shake of his head. "Good idea, Gordie, lets go grab a coffee. See you later, Virgil. Remember to behave yourself this time!"

"So, now we are finally alone, how about that lap dance you made me promise you?" She lent in towards him, he gulped and leant back into the pillow. Panic filled his eyes, and he quickly glanced at the door, but his brothers had left the room.

She burst out laughing and pulled away. "Don't worry Virgil, you didn't embarrass yourself too much. I have seen much worse!"

"Thank God!" He said in relief, "I thought you were really going to..." He looked at her raised eyebrow, "I mean...um...not that you're not good looking or anything.." He rushed on, getting flustered again, "..I'm sure you do a great lap dance...I mean.. oh God!"

She laughed again, "Calm down, Virgil, I'm glad to see you can string a sentence together again, well almost!" She picked up the chart, "Looks like we can sign you out today. How is your other brother? The one that had a free ride like you. What's his name again?"

"Scott. His name is Scott." He sighed and looked to the door again. "I don't know, my brothers must know, call them back in and we can ask them."

She smiled at him and opened the door to find Gordon leaning against the wall on the other side of the corridor.

"That was quick!" He exclaimed cheekily, "Is it my turn!" He pushed himself off the wall and came into the room.

"Your brother wants to know how Scott is." She told him as he passed her. "You can take him home after he's been checked out. I'll get my assistant to come and see you both shortly."

"Gordon, how's Scott? Has he woken up yet? Does he know who he is?" he asked quickly. He hadn't seen or heard anything about Scott since he got there.

Gordon was about to joke about it, but the look on his brother's face made him sober up instantly.

"Virg, calm down bro, Scott is fine. He's sleeping. He had to have surgery to remove the bullet. Dad and John are with him waiting for him to wake up."

Virgil let out a sigh of relief. "Thank God. Can I see him?" He made to get up, but both Gordon and Caspian each put a hand on his shoulders to stop him.

"Not yet. I'm sure your father or brother will let you know of any change in his condition, but you need to get signed out first. Okay?"

"Yeah, okay. But I must see him. Can't you sign me out now? Please?" He almost begged, but she shook her head, no.

"I've got my rounds to do, I just wanted to check on you first. See you later." She patted his shoulder gently before leaving the room.

Gordon watched her leave with a funny look on his face. "She's sweet on you, bro."

"Huh? What?" Virgil had tuned out.

"That doctor, she likes you Virg, no idea why, coz I'm the one with the looks and physique." He made a show of flexing his arm muscles, and twisting his fit figure to give Virgil a side view of his profile, "Maybe she just likes her guys podgy," he finished with a long sigh.

"Hey! I'm not podgy!"

"You keep on telling yourself that bro, but one day you'll see I'm right!"

TBTBTB

Jeff watched the rise and fall of Scotts chest as he breathed in and out.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

The rhythmical sound was music to his ears. His son, his eldest son, was finally back. He just need Scott to wake up and tell him that he was okay. Jeff was not sure whether he would hug him or yell at him for putting the family through this. As his mind wondered, his eyes drifted to the monitors around the room.

He missed the first flickering of movement underneath Scotts eyelids.

He missed the slow blinking as Scott tried to open his eyes, but failed as the drugs pushed him back under the waves of darkness.

Jeff looked back down at his son's face once more. The door opened and John walked in.

"Any change?" He asked quietly as he walked over.

Jeff shook his head, "No. The doctor said he should wake up soon...but," He took a deep breath, "How are Virgil and Gordon doing? Can they fly home yet?"

John smiled, "Yeah, the doc said as soon as Virgil had his final check-up he could go. Why don't you take a break, Dad. I'll stay here with Scott. You should let Alan know what's going on, he'll be feeling left out, up there on his own."

Jeff started to protest, but John cut him off. "Trust me Dad, I know. Go on, I'll call you if Scott wakes, ok?"

Jeff stood and put a weary, firm hand on Johns shoulder. "Alright son. I will. Son, what would I do without you? You hold this family together you know."

John gave him a smile back, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Yeah, well someone has to. I'll let you know of any change. Just go Dad."

Jeff nodded and left, not seeing the tormented look in his blond son's face as he turned from his father to look upon his eldest brother. "I'm sorry Scott. I should have done more..." he whispered, closing his hand over Scott's, and closing his eyes for a brief second.

Scott stirred within his unconscious brain. Someone was close. Someone needed his help. He struggled against the dark water holding him afloat, but at the same time stopping him from reaching the land. He began to swim harder. The effort he used against the currant forcing him back into the deeper sea was strong. But Scott's will was stronger.

He fought his way through the waves, and then he opened his eyes to a blinding light, only to shut them just as quickly. He was panting, struggling for a breath, then he heard a voice, someone calling, telling him to calm down.

He thought he knew that voice.

He opened his eyes once again, and as his eyes adjusted to the whiteness, he saw a blurry figure come into his vision.

"Hey Scott. It's about time you woke up." The person whispered loudly. Scott blinked, he tried to say something, but his voice wouldn't work. He began to struggle weakly, but the man in front of him held him down easily.

"Whoa there, Scotty boy, calm down. You're safe. It's me, John. It's okay, everything is going to be ok, big brother. Just breathe for me."

His eye-lids slipped shut as the man spoke the words to him. He managed to croak out "Who ..are..you?" Before the familiar black sea swallowed him once again.

The words were so soft, that had John not been right in front of his brother, he would never have heard them.

He grimaced, and jerked away from his brother as if he'd just been burnt.

"Damn it, Scott, why the hell did those bastards have to do this to you?" He slammed his fist into the nearest object, which happened to be the wall.

At that moment, Gordon came in. "Whoa, Johny boy, what's the wall ever done to you?"

John swung round in surprise to face the ginger haired prankster, "He woke up Gords..."

Gordon's face lit up in relief, 'That's great! Why.."

John's next words froze him to the core. "He didn't know who I was." He felt tears threaten for the first time since it started, pushed past Gordon, and practically ran from the room, leaving Gordon in an uneasy silence, unsure of what to do. He glanced at Scott, asleep once more on the bed, and decided to follow John.

TBTBTB

Caspian watched the brothers leave, and knew it was now or never.

She walked into the room, and looked down at the helpless man on the bed.

"I'm sorry, Pheonix. I really am sorry for everything I have caused your family, but I had no choice..." She looked at the door once before opening her cell phone and pressing the recall button.

"Vixen, it's me. I'm with him now..."

TBTBTB

My thanks to Sam1 and Tikatu for helping me get this chapter loaded up.

Just so you know, I'm back and ready to rock'n'roll !!!

Thanks for all your reviews!!


	23. Chapter 23

Hi Guys, Thank you once again for your continued support.

Anon - spelling checked and changed in past chapters.. (Thanks to Quiller for beta reading all past chapters for me as she read this!!! 15th May,2007)

Chapter 23

Jeff found himself an empty office in the hospital so he could contact his youngest son and bring him up to speed with the goings on at the hospital.

The communicator beeped almost as impatiently as Jeff's heart as he waited for Alan to answer. It shouldn't be taking him this long to answer the call. Jeff began to feel uneasy.

Then to his immense relief, the young face appeared on the screen in front of him, "Dad! Thank God! How is Scott?" He paused as he waited for an answer, but he obviously wanted to continue.

"Hello son. Scott is sleeping in recovery now. John's with him while I call you. How are you doing up there, son?" He was tired beyond belief, but the well-being of his boys came first. His sharp eyes noted the haunted look on his youngest son's face, "Alan, what's wrong? We found Scott, he's going to be okay."

Alan swallowed before answering his father, "Its not that, its just that..have you watched the news in the last half hour?"

Jeff frowned. "No. They're all talking trash. Until everyone is safe at home and we can re-group, I want nothing to do with anyone. Understood?" His voice was harsh, and Alan barely recognised it.

"I just heard from Parker. Dad, Penny is injured." He saw a new expression of disbelief appear on his dads face, but he knew he had to continue. "The tunnel in LA... Agent 12, he blew it up, to...to stop the FBI and Interpol getting the information that incriminates Scott, and us, as the terrorists." Alan took a deep breath, "Dad, they need our help. Let Tin-tin and Brains come and get me, then we can fly over to help get out any survivors. Please, Dad! They need us!"

Jeff shook his head. "No. No, Alan you are staying up in Five. And besides, how would you rescue them? Two is here, One is missing, and no you're not taking Three." He raised his voice as Alan started to protest. "Alan, that's enough! I have too much at risk here, and you're not going to become a target as well."

Alan knew his father would say that, but he had to try anyway. "We could take One. She's back home. Oh, and they caught the Hood, just in case you wondered where he went too." Alan sat back and waited for the connection to drop.

It did.

"What...Hood? When?...Huh?" It was the first time Alan had ever heard his father almost stutter, and the first time he could not speak a proper sentence.

"Calm down, Dad, its all under control. The Hood tried to take over the island, but they were ready for him. He's out cold, literally. I think they put him in the cold storage locker, with a warm coat. They didn't want murder on their hands. He flew back in Thunderbird One, but he did bash her up a bit in landing. Brains says it's fixable, in fact, I think he's already started."

"He has?" Jeff sighed and looked away, "That changes nothing. You stay up there son." He ran a hand through his grey hair in agitation. "I'm sending Virgil, Gordon and John home. They will bring back Two. Keep me informed about the tunnel. If I know Williams well enough, I'd be willing to say that the sly dog is still alive and kicking. How bad is Penny hurt?"

Alan smiled for the first time since Jeff spoke to him. "Parker thinks she was just knocked out, but he left her there and said he was heading back to Phoenix Hospital. Something about he needed to see Scott. I think he was in shock, or he'd never have left Penny."

"He's on his way now?" Jeff asked, once again a commander.

Alan looked down at the screen tracking Fab 1's GPS. "Yes, his ETA is five minutes. Why, what's wrong?"

Jeff looked worried again. "He would only leave Penny if he knew something more serious was happening. He knows something, patch me through to him. Now Alan!"

"Yes sir." He replied, and opened a channel to FAB 1.

TBTBTB

Parker drove like he was possessed. In the back Wolf clung onto the door handle to stop himself from being thrown about. He was terrified for his life with this mad old man. Was he trying to get them killed in a road accident?

"Oh my God!" Wolf cried out as Parker overtook a car, almost coliding with a truck. He closed his eyes unable to watch anymore, his face pale.

Parker glanced briefly in the rear view mirror. "H'if you throw up in the back, I'll be forced to eject you from this car," he threatened.

Wolf just swallowed, and he had no doubt in his mind that the old man would do just that.

"What's the rush? Slow down before you get us both killed!" he pleaded. He had no idea why they had left so suddenly. It was obvious that these were linked to International Rescue. Wolf felt bad for involving them, he really did. But his own life came first.

"That's on a 'need to know' basis lad. You tell me what I need to know, then I'll consider what we're going to do with you. If what you told me is right, then Master Scott is still very much in danger. You are going to help me catch the rest of your team."

Wolf looked slightly relieved, and horrified at the same time, "No, I..."

His voice was cut off by the communicator bleeping. Parker, without slowing the car down answered the call.

"Parker, this is Jeff. What's going on?" Jeff's voice was urgent, and his face appeared on the vid-screen.

"Sir, h'are you with Master Scott?"

"I'm at the hospital, yes. John is with him at the moment. Why? What's going on?"

Parker swung the pink car around a sharp corner, approaching the hospital. "The threat to mister Scott is still here. I'm sure they plan to either take him, or eliminate him. He knows who they are."

"I was told they'd been taken out of commission. Who's left?" Jeff was alarmed, and he opened the office door and began a fast walk back to Scott's room, ignoring people as he went. He regretted finding a room so far away from his son's section.

"Well, Wolf told me they have an outside operative, goes by the name of Caspian. This Caspian works at the hospital..."

"Damn!" Jeff broke in, "Did he tell you what Caspian looks like? How do we know who it is?" Jeff broke into a run, pushing past people in order to get to his son. Panic began to overtake as he began to see threats everywhere. This Caspian could be anyone.

"I'm pulling up now. H'i'll meet you h'in Scott's room." Parker cut off as he got out the car and dragged Wolf out of the back. "You're coming with me. Think you can recognise who Caspian is? Remember lad, h'I've got a gun that's just itching to put a bullet h'in you."

Wolf kept pace next to the man. "Yeah I know. Look, I want to help, I told you that before, I don't want anything to happen to Nix."

"His name's Scott, stop calling him Nix, he's not your brother." Parker growled as they made their way to Scott's room.

Jeff was running full pelt when he felt someone grab his arm, "Sir, you need to slow down." It was one of the hospital security guards. He had been reported, and the man tried to restrain the desperate man.

Big mistake.

Jeff Tracy, not knowing if this was some trick, reacted. "Let me go! I've got to save my son!"

The man should have seen the look in Jeff's eyes, should have heeded his warning, because as he tightened his grip, Jeff swung his fist and punched the man in the stomach, letting out all his pent up grief and anger from the nightmare of the last week.

"Oof!' The man cried out and he bent over, but he did let go of Jeff. Jeff made to run, but was grabbed by another guard, and then another. They restrained him, and he fought like a man possessed. "Calm down sir. You're not going anywhere with an attitude like that." One guard tried to explain. "This is a hospital, you can't just go around like that."

Jeff struggled, not hearing what they were saying.

"Sir!" Another voice entered the fray. It was Parker. "Gentleman, please release Mister Tracy. He is needed in ICU. His son needs him now," Parker informed them.

"So?" The man Jeff punched stood up, holding his stomach painfully, "I don't give a toss who he is, he is under arrest for ABH. Take him to the office boys, Mr Tracy and I are going to have a little chat."

Jeff narrowed his eyes at the man. Was this Caspian? The man was definately trying to keep him from his son. He knew he would have to go with them, but Parker and the others were still able to help.

"Parker, find Scott, call the boys and get them to stay with him at all times. I'm going to have him transferred. Get John to call my lawyer. I'm going to sue the hell off this hospital for how it's handling my family."

The guards paled a bit at this, they knew of Jeff Tracy, multi-billionaire and world famous business man. He was not someone you got in the way of.

Parker nodded, and pulled Wolf away, he asked "Was any h'of those men Caspian?"

"No." He didn't dare tell Parker that Caspian was a woman. She was his ticket out of here. He also knew Vixen and Weasel would be somewhere close by too.

TBTBTB

John couldn't take it.

He knew Scott still had traces of that damned drug in his system. But after he'd recognised them back in the tunnel, he'd hoped that Scott would wake up as himself. He felt the tears of emotional agony pickle in his eyes as he made his way to the men's room.

When he got there he splashed cold water over his face and then pressed his palms on the wall, either side of the mirror. He looked up at his reflection. He saw a man looking back at him, and he almost didn't recognise himself. He felt the urge to laugh. But he had no idea why.

"I must be going crazy," he told himself out loud.

A voice from behind, startled him and he swung around to face Gordon. "Nah, you've always been crazy John. You only just noticed."

Gordon took in his brothers expression, the strange and almost defeated look in his eyes. "What's really the matter, bro? You been drugged too?" Gordon reach an arm forward and squeezed John's shoulder.

The touch had the desired affect, "Oh God, Gordon. I thought, I really thought if we got him away from that place, everything would be fine." He took a shaky breath, "But its not fine. He didn't recognise me, not even a flicker. I know its too soon just yet, but that's when it hit me. We nearly lost him." He blinked as a tear tried to fall. He would not cry in front of anyone, especially Gordon. "I'm angry, I just want to.. you know.."

Gordon looked deep into John pale blue eyes, "Yeah" He said quietly "I know, I heard you, Johnny boy. You don't mean what you said though. Its just a feeling. Hell, even I want those bastards to go to hell. But I'm not going to send them there."

John looked at him sharply. "You heard me? God, what's a man got to do to get some peace 'round here?"

Gordon smiled "You could always try the cafe, but I don't know if they do the mushy ones."

John frowned on confusion, "Huh?"

Gordon shook his head, "You really are out of it. Peas, you know little green things that are great for flick at Virgil while he's practising on the piano."

John couldn't help but smirk. "I get it." He stood up straighter, "I guess we should get back, huh. Scott's on his own, unless Dad's finished on the phone with Alan."

"You ok then?" Gordon asked, concern still in his voice.

"Yeah. Thanks bro."

"Anytime, but this means you owe me." He grinned and John smiled slightly back. "Come on."

TBTBTB

Caspian shut the phone and looked down once again at the handsome man sleeping on the hospital bed.

She shook her head, and tentatively pushed a stray wisp of hair from his brow with a finger. "You really do look like Phoenix. No wonder Wolf wants to protect you." She told him softly. "I'm sorry you got mixed up in all of this. I really am. But there's one last thing I need to do."

She ran her finger down the side of his face, and then pulled out a syringe out of her pocket. She looked at the closed door, before turning back to Scott.

"You shall be Nix no longer." She whispered in his ear as she inserted the needle into his arm. "Have peace." She pushed the fluid into his body, and pulled out the needle as the door to the room flew open...

TBTBTB

To Be Continued...

(Evil laugh echoes in the distance...)


	24. Chapter 24

Hi guys, sorry for the long delay. But between correcting the past chapters (thanks to Quiller for her help!) and life in general, I finally have this up.

A big Thank You to both Sam1 and Quiller for beta reading this for me!!!

Chapter 24

After pausing at the nurses' station to check Scott's room number, Parker and Wolf hurried down the corridor that they were directed to. Parker was breathing hard and sweating. When he reached the closed door, he shoved it open with unnecessary force. The door swung open with a bang when it hit the wall, making one of the people inside the room jump. Parker walked into the room with Wolf right behind him. Parker noticed and filed away the sudden look of shock on the woman's face from the unexpected intrusion. Recovering quickly, she snapped at both of the men.

"What the hell do you think you are doing? This is a hospital not a playground!" She walked towards them before she realized it was Wolf standing behind the old man. Her eyes widened just a little in surprise, not sure if he was going to give her away.

"H'I'm sorry, miss." Parker started to say, he was expecting to find Weasel, Vixen or 'Caspian' there, not just a doctor. But then this was a hospital, what did he expect. Parker had the courtesy to look ashamed of his boorish behavior. He was about to continue but Wolf cut him off.

"What did you just give him?" The words were spat out harshly. Wolf didn't think that she would kill him but the empty syringe he'd seen in her hand gave him pause to rethink the situation. He couldn't go through losing his 'brother'. Not again. Caspian smiled at him.

"Just part of his treatment, young man." Still playing the part of a caring doctor, she walked assuredly past them and towards the door. She had made it halfway to the door when John and Gordon returned from the men's room.

"What's going on?" John's voice echoed around the room. Silence greeted him. Gordon pushed past and took in the situation.

"Hi Sandra. What are you doing up here? Have you finished with Virgil?" His eyes narrowed as he glanced at Wolf. "Parker, what's he doing here?"

Caspian swallowed nervously and answered before anyone else could. She needed to get out of this room; she could not let Wolf give her away.

"Virgil is free to go. I told him I'd drop in on Scott to see how he was doing." She made a show of looking at her watch. "Now that I've done what I told him, I really must finish my rounds. It was nice to see you boys again." Once more she moved to the door, John stepped out of her way but Gordon refused to budge. He remained determinedly still in the doorway, his broad shoulders blocking the exit, and her escape. She started to say "Excuse me..." but he ignored her, his attention fixated on Parker and Wolf. Something was wrong.

Parker had a strange look on his face as he studied both Sandra's and Wolf's expressions.

"Parker. Why. Is. He. Here?" Gordon demanded. Caspian was so close to getting away. The only thing between her and freedom was this good-looking young man.

"He h'is here to help catch the criminals who did this to your brother. He knows what they all look like. We don't." She felt her heart quicken at those words. Wolf could drop her in it to save his own skin. She glanced over at him but he was not looking at her. Wolf could see Gordon and John doing the math inside their heads. He also knew Parker was watching him and it would not take long for the old man to realise what was happening, from Wolf's reaction to Sandra's presence in Scott's room. Thoughts clicked in John's mind, putting together facts they had seen and heard. John's eyes narrowed as he noticed Sandra's jaw clench tightly at Parker's words. Shifting his gaze, he caught sight of the used syringe in Sandra's hand.

"Why would you come in here to see Scott? You could just have asked one of the other nurses or at reception...unless. Did you just inject him with something?" He paused before looking back over at Wolf. He suddenly remembered it had been Sandra and Wolf together in the car park with Virgil when that van pulled up to try and kidnap him. "You're one of them!" he swung back to Sandra pointing a finger at her. His hand balled into a fist, the anger from earlier returning. "What the hell did you just inject him with?" he pushed her up against the wall before anyone could stop him. "You're not really a doctor are you? Are you?" He shouted the last words in her face and she flinched away, banging her head on the wall. Her face was suddenly full of conflicting emotions. Parker recovered from John's sudden reaction and pulled a gun on Wolf.

"So you h'are still trying to trick me boy. Is she h'one h'of your gang?" Wolf and Caspian's eyes met both wide with the horror of being caught.

"No! Its not what it looks like. I swear to you, I'm, we're not bad." Wolf gasped out as Parker pressed the gun into his sore ribs. "What I told you before, its all true. We are both trapped..." while Wolf was babbling, Gordon moved over to look at Scott. He was still pale and seemed to be comfortably asleep. Everything appeared normal until he noticed the fresh injection mark on his arm and he turned to face Caspian.

"What did you inject him with?" he repeated both his older brother's and Wolf's words.

"Who are you really?" John's fists were full of her scrub top that wasn't covered by her lab jacket, and her back was now pressed against the wall. She had fear in her eyes now. This man was actually hurting her but there was no way she was going to tell him that. She didn't think it would do her any good anyway.

"Look. I am a Doctor here." she started to explain, "In research. I was forced to provide a sample of this new drug we have been working on. It has been developed for criminals and people with mental problems. It helps us to reprogram their minds, to help them forget and change their memories. It gives them a fresh start. A new life. A good life." She looked over at Wolf and saw him plead at her with his eyes. She smiled gently at him as she decided to come clean. "Wolf, I'm going to tell them everything."

"No! They'll find us and kill us, Cas. I want 'out' as much as you do. For the sake of Nix, Cas don't." He was almost begging her. "Please, don't let him have died for nothing." He whispered. He loved to taunt and tease her. They had never got on but he could never forget that she was his dead brother's girl. A brother who loved her more than he loved Wolf. And his brother died for both of them.

"I'm sorry, Wolf, but you know Nix would want it this way. I can't live with myself. I have to do this. No matter what the cost." The others stayed silent, listening to the emotional confrontation between the two captive criminals, held at separate sides of the room. "Look at the trouble we've caused already. Its time to make it stop. Let's end this now, Wolf. Please?" Wolf wearily nodded his head, he knew she was right. He'd told Parker only half of the truth.

"Okay," he sighed, the fight going out of him. "Okay, I guess you're right. But can we go somewhere else to talk about this? Its a long story and I for one would like to be comfortable, besides that its kind of crowded in here," he tried to lighten the mood of the room. The tenseness was stifling him.

Just then Jeff strode into the room, red faced.

"What the hell is going on here?" He bellowed, seeing John holding Virgil's young female doctor against a wall, his face looking like thunder and Parker with a gun stuck in Wolf's side. "You had better make this good or ..."

He was interrupted by a soft groan from the bed. "Scott?" Gordon heard the noise first, saying his name; he swung back to his oldest brother lying on the bed. Scott started to come around again. Jeff rushed over to the bed, standing next to Gordon. John swung his head around to watch but did not release his grip on the woman.

"Talk to me, Scott. Come on, Son, open those eyes for me." Jeff encouraged his eldest into waking up. Not knowing he had already come around once. Scott groaned again, louder this time.

Jeff kept talking and squeezed his hand. "That's my boy. You just follow my voice; squeeze my hand if you can hear me."

They waited with bated breath. Everything else forgotten.

A huge smiled of relief played on Jeff's face for the first time that week as he felt Scott return the gesture weakly with his own hand.

Scott had finally made contact.

TBTBTB

He could hear noises close to him though they sounded fuzzy, like he had cotton wool stuffed in his ears. The noises changed into voices and they got louder.

Someone was shouting. It was a voice he felt he should know but could not place it. Other voices joined in and he felt himself becoming more alert. Unfortunately, the words weren't making any sense to him. But the anger, fear and confusion in the room made him push himself to wake-up. He let out a groan with the effort it took him to push past the sluggishness of the medication. He groaned again, louder this time. He still could not open his eyes but he suddenly felt a solid connection with someone. Someone holding his hand, squeezing it. He clung to it like a fly to a beacon of light. It guided him back and when he felt his fingers start to tingle he tried to move his hand and squeeze the hand that was helping him to return to wakefulness. He began to feel stronger as the hand that gripped his own like a life-line, held on, not letting him go, if that was possible.

He slowly forced his eyes to open and managed to get them to open half way. The blurred and distorted colours of figures standing close by confused him. He blinked gently and tried to open them wider. A deep voice encouraged him to open his eyes, another voice, younger sounding, joined in with the deep voice to form a chorus of strength for him to follow. The colours took shape and he squinted as he looked upon an aged and familiar face beaming down at him in joy. He was confused as to why this man would be so happy. Was he dead? The man spoke to him again and he tried to listen but the voice faded out as his own mind was unable to make out what he was seeing, hearing and feeling all at the same time. It was too much information for his addled brain to contend with.

He tried to shut it all out, he needed to get away, though he was not sure why. He let out another moan, why was he not in control of his body? Why couldn't he think properly? He was becoming unsettled and that lead him to the beginnings of a panic attack. He hated not being in control.

His breathing began to get faster and he broke out in a sweat. Weakly, he tried to make the man holding his hand release him. He needed to get away but he wasn't sure who he needed to flee. The need to get home was overwhelming as was his vulnerability. How he knew he was vulnerable and he hated it. But he couldn't take the time to figure out why just now.

The noise around him started to get louder and it appeared to him that more people came in the room. His eyes opened wide suddenly, everything came sharply into focus. He saw everyone in the room as he looked around. He looked past the old man and the younger man standing at his side and stared into the eyes of a tall, blond-haired man.

A wisp of a memory crossed his mind, and he thought of one word, so he whispered it "Brother." There was a gasp from across the room and his eyes were drawn to the dismayed sound. His gaze fell on another blond-haired man.

Frowning slightly with his confusion, one word left his lips again. "Brother."

He felt another needle prick his arm and despite his distant fear of injections, he could not fight it any more. Sighing softly, his sight began to fade as the darkness beckoned him once again. He suddenly felt no threat from these people. Not with his brothers here, so close to him. He let the restless dreams of the past flow into his subconscious.

TBTBTB

"Damn."

The voice that spoke echoed around the now small cavern. One of the few that remained intact after the explosion in the tunnel in LA. Colonel Williams lifted and shook his head. Dust and bits of rock flew off in different directions. He tried to push himself up off the floor but found himself pinned down.

"Damn," he repeated, his voice echoed off the walls once again. "Dixen? Can you hear me, lad?"

A groan to his left followed by a sneeze was his answer. "Sir, yes, Sir." Was the weak reply. "You sure have a way of getting things done, Sir," his voice a little stronger as he realised he was still alive and in one piece.

A chuckle came from the Colonel's direction. "At least things get done my way. Can you move?"

Dixen pushed himself up off the floor and carefully climbed to his knees. "I seem to be in one piece, Sir," he found his torch and switched it on, light filling the darkness. They both blinked in the glow. "Are you alright, Sir?"

Dixen spotted his normally flamboyant Colonel had yet to rise from the ground. "Sir?" His voice bounced back at him from the opposite wall. He carefully crawled over to his commanding officer.

The seasoned old man blinked again in the light. "Don't shine that damn light in my eyes, Dixen," he ordered gruffly. He shifted his position as the young officer got closer. "I'm wedged under something. Lift it while I manoeuvre myself out."

Dixen shone the torch over Colonel Williams's body and held back a gasp of dismay. 'Wedged' was an understatement; the Colonel's lower body was completely buried under a large rock and some smaller rubble. Swallowing hard, Dixen had no idea why the older man was even alive.

Taking a deep breath he turned away from the mess and back to Colonel Williams face. "No, Sir," he started to say, but was interrupted by the older man.

"No? What do you mean by that, damn you, Dixen?" The colonel's face was pale and covered in dirty streaks of sweat and dust, which mingled with some blood from a cut to his forehead. "Just lift the damn thing and I'll crawl out," he ordered again, though weaker this time.

Dixen had never gone against an order in his life, and he hated to see the man, his commander, trapped in such a gruesome way.

"Sorry, Sir. I can't move the rock. You're trapped; I'm going to have to go for help."

"Damn you, lad," was the reply. "Why did you have to start going against me now? Damn it! You should have left with the others, not stayed here with this old dog."

Dixen pressed a piece of material against the Colonel's head, "I've learnt a lot from you, sir. I'm following what you've always taught us. In your own words "Survival of the fittest - not just in health, but in heart and soul," he smiled as he remembered the first time he heard the Colonel say it. "You always taught us to leave no-one behind, sir. So I stayed."

"Well damn it, I was wrong. You should have left. We're going to die down here, lad."

Dixen smiled sadly. "No we're not, sir. You forget our friends, International Rescue. They owe you one. Big time, Agent 12."

They both smiled at that. "Never could get much past you could I, Lad?"

"No, Sir." Colonel Williams held up his hand and Dixen grasped it with his own. Together they stayed in silence, listening to each other's breathing and the strange echoes of the now destroyed tunnel.

TBTBTB

"Who are the others involved?" the uniformed man demanded, "give me names!" He banged the table between the two of them with his fist to try to provoke a reaction from his prisoner.

The tattooed man smiled grimly, satisfied that he was getting on the officer's nerves. He knew what he was about to say would really ruin things for International Rescue. But he had to lead this idiot of the law to think that the information had been forced out of him.

The officer now had both hands resting on the table, he was leaning in towards Snake, so their faces were almost touching. Snake pretended to be a little intimidated. "Tell me who the pilot is. If you co-operate, it won't be so bad for you in the courts. Who gave the orders?" the man was red in the face, his patience running thin. He had read all the records of this escaped prisoner, and the other members of his old gang. But all the clues so far had indicated that someone more powerful and skilled was in command. Someone such as the personnel of International Rescue. They had the funds, the technology, the experienced pilots, and the brains to pull this kind of terrorism off.

All they needed was a name. A new lead to the identity of the renigade group of so-called-heroes.

Snake cleared his throat. "Tracy."

"What? Tracy? A woman was flying the jet?" The officer looked taken back, but recovered quickly. Snake tried not to laugh at the buffoon.

"Not a woman. The pilot's name is Scott Tracy. He flew the jet."

The officer's partner scribbled down the name on a piece of paper and left the room. Now they had something to work on.

TBTBTB

Thanks for reading!! And thank you to all for the fantastic reviews. They make me VERY happy, and help feed my muse!!!


	25. Chapter 25

**Okay, here is the long awaited chapter. **

**Thank you to Penny for keeping me firmly on the ground...**

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 25**

Penny put out a call to International Rescue.

She still could not believe that Colonel Williams would sacrifice his life and his men's lives for the sake of some fake, incriminating evidence against International Rescue. There was more to this man than she knew about. He and Jeff must have been very close for the Colonel's strong reaction when he found the only way to get rid of the evidence.

The call was answered by Alan, just as she knew it would.

The youngest Tracy heard her voice, and decided to answer the call, despite his father's orders.

"This is International Rescue. What is the emergency?" He asked her professionally, not knowing the reason for her to use the public communication satellite instead of her personal line.

"There has been an explosion down a tunnel in LA, some men are trapped inside. Urgent assistance required." She held her breath, hoping that Jeff had not forbidden the boys from doing their job.

After a pause, Alan's voice came back through the speaker. "Will our Agents be given full protection and discretion?" he asked.

Penny looked over at the men in charge, they nodded silently their agreement. She gave them a small smile before answering Jeff's youngest son. "Yes. No-one will get near them. We are at your disposal."

"FAB. I am locked onto your co-ordinates and our team will be there shortly. International Rescue out."

Penny let out a sigh of relief, and turned to the men at her side. "I told you they would come. They are the good guys. They do realise you may try to catch them, but they are coming anyway. Does that sound like a terrorist group to you?"

Some of the men had the courtesy to look ashamed, but a couple of them looked defiant. "This could just be a cover up, to let us think they're innocent. Hell, no-one knows who they are, and they're way to secretive for my liking. We should check out those machines of theirs whilst they are here.."

"You will do no such thing!" a deep voice sternly told the man. They all turned around to see General Bron stride into the tent followed by his armed men.

TBTBTB

At the hospital, Gordon was waiting for Virgil to get dressed.

Virgil listened as Gordon relayed what had happened since Sandra had last checked up on him.

"I don't believe it!" Virgil gasped out. "She seemed so nice. I mean,...she's a doctor, why would she do something like that to help those criminals?" Virgil swung away from his brother and took a few steps, his shoulders tense, before turning back again. "God, Gordon. How is Scott reacting to the drugs? Is he going to be alright now? Are the side effects showing?"

Gordon let a smile escape his lips. "Virg, you're rambling, man. If you weren't doped up yourself a few hours ago, I'd say you had a 'thing' for our pretty doctor. And as for Scott, well you can see for yourself in a few minutes before we head home."

Virgil pulled his t-shirt over his head, trying to hide the fact he was blushing. "No I don't. I'm just worried about Scott. Is it hot in here?"

Gordon laughed, "No. Come on, let's get going."

Virgil followed Gordon out and they walked side by side to Scott's ward. As they made their way past the flock of people who seemed to appear in the hallway, Gordon's watch communicator began to buzz against his wrist.

"Hang on Virg, someone's calling. I'd better take it." Virgil looked back at his younger brother, a slight frown crossing his face. He wanted to see Scott for himself. As far as he was concerned it had been too long already.

"It could be Alan, bro. Come on, it'll take a few seconds." Gordon put his hand on Virgil's shoulder. "Besides, Dad will flay me if I let you go anywhere on your own. Until those people are caught, we stick together. Okay?"

Virgil sighed. "Sure. Fine. Okay, let's do this quickly then." Gordon smiled and they went into an empty room.

Gordon patched through to Alan. "Hey sprout, what can I do you for?"

Alan's face was tight, "We got a call. I told them we'd come. Can you get to Thunderbird Two?"

"You what! I thought Dad said.." Virgil's voice cut over Gordon's answer.

"It's Penny, guys. She offered us full protection. We have to do this one, because its Dad's mate, Colonel Williams."

Virgil looked blank, but it hit Gordon like a steam train in the gut. "Damn it! Where are they? What happened?"

Alan answered quickly, "They were checking out the base where you found Scott. Apparently it was full of stuff that could get us locked away for years, if anyone made the connection. Penny thinks this would give Interpol a direct link to IR. And they would pin everything on Scott, as the ring-leader. Penny said that Colonel Williams destroyed it all, but almost taking his own life to do it. We have to get them out, alive, if we can."

"Does Dad know yet?" Gordon answered, an idea forming in his mind.

"Uh...no." Alan replied after a brief hesitation. "This is more down your street, I couldn't exactly call John now, could I?"

Gordon laughed. This would give him something to do, instead of waiting impatiently at the hospital or going home. "I'm on my way." He turned to Virgil, "You go up to the ward and cover my back." He made to leave the room, but Virgil's hand on his arm restrained him from moving out of the room.

"I'm coming too. No way am I about to let you do this alone."

If Gordon was shocked, he never let it show. He just nodded his head and smiled at his older brother. "Let's do this."

Together they left the room and made their way to the car park.

TBTBTB

Awareness came back slowly.

Gradually, he began to assess his senses. He knew he was lying down. He could feel the sheets lightly covering his lower body. The coolness of the air hit him next, it felt a refreshing change from the place where he had been floating.

Drowning.

He tried a single, deeper breath and let the air flood his lungs. It felt strange, but good. His ears picked up some noises in the room. A beeping sound began to pierce his hearing as his awareness grew.

He wondered where he was.

He felt unsure, he felt like he was in a dream world. Nothing seemed to be real. But then, his consciousness told him that the air was real, as were the sheets covering his body. The beeps became a constant thing in his being, and he found himself counting them.

A voice suddenly spoke, and would have startled him, had he been able to move. It came out of nowhere, and boomed out like thunder, though the voice was not raised, just quietly spoken.

It was close.

It was familiar.

Who?

He listened to the voice. He tried to concentrate on the words, and gradually they began to take shape and he was able to listen and hear what the person was saying.

"...Look, I know it's been hard on you. I never asked for this, but then, neither did you. I'm sorry for this mess. If you can hear me, just know that, that I'm sorry." The voice trailed off.

The person, whoever it was got up and left the room.

Who was sorry? His brain tried to digest the information. So he went for what he knew.

He was lying down, in a bed. Someone he knew was sorry for something. He was unable to communicate... Then it hit him, he had not even tried to speak or open his eyes yet. Why? What was wrong with him?

"Wait." He tried to say to the person leaving the room, but to the ears of the person, and to himself, it came out as a soft groan.

He was shocked at the weakness of the sound, and he felt slightly panicked at the notion. Was he really this helpless? What had happened to him?

"Hey, you awake?" The voice was back. The person grabbed his hand and squeezed, it was like a life line, and he clung to it. But he was shocked when another hand cupped his cheek gently and the voice spoke to him again. "Hey, come on, bro. Open those eyes for me. I heard you, I know you're in that body somewhere."

Eyes?

Of course! He had eyes, he had forgotten about them again! He should open them. So he tried. The first attempt took him by shock. Bright lights stung his tender pupils and his eyelids automatically slammed shut.

"Hey, come on. You can do it. Try again, I'll close the blinds for you. Hold on."

The voice and the touch left instantly, and he panicked. He had never felt so alone. But before his body could react, the touch and voice were back. Encouraging him to open his eyes, to say something, anything.

Once again, he forced his eyes open. The light was not there this time, so he kept them open. But he could not see. Only blurry colours, mostly white. He blinked a few times and the colours began to take shape. A figure became clearer.

He closed his eyes again, and took another deep breath and willed his sight to come back. When he opened them this time he was rewarded with the sight of his brother next to him.

"Hey, bro. Welcome back!" The relief in the voice was unmistakable. Blond hair seemed to shine like a halo on an angel.

"W...w..wha'...h..'pen?" He tried to say, his voice was rough and sounded pathetic even to his own ears. He tried to swallow, but his throat was dry.

The voice made to move away again, but this time he held on, not willing to let his lifeline go just yet.

The blond man smiled down at him. "I'm just getting you some water, bro. You'll be able to speak better after a drink. Okay?"

He tried to nod, but the movement made him feel dizzy and he shut his eyes against the spinning room.

"Hey, don't crash out on me again. Come on, here, sip this."

He felt something pressed to his lips and he sucked. Cool liquid came into his mouth and soothed his throat as it trickled down. He wanted to guzzle it, but the water was taken away. "Don't drink too much, or you'll choke. Take it easy."

He opened his eyes again, and this time was able to put a name to the face. "Wolf."

Wolf smiled, happy to be recognised. "Yeah, it's me. So how you feeling?"

He shook tried to assess his body, but mostly he felt numb. "Wha,.. what happened?"

Wolf looked away before smiling down at the dark haired man on the hospital bed. "You were shot," was his simple answer. Wolf looked away just as quickly. The man on the bed knew he was holding something back.

"What? What else, Wolf?" He was beginning to worry again now. What was wrong?

Just then, the door opened and in walked another blond haired man.

Recognition filled his mind. "John!"

The sound of his brother's voice, though weak, made the brightest smile that had ever appeared on John's face shine like a beacon of light.

"Scott! You're awake!" He rushed to his brother's side, causing Wolf to release his hold on the injured man's hand.

"Scott?" The weak man asked, a confused expression on his face. "Who's Scott? I'm Pheonix."

John's smiled instantly vanished, and his face paled. "Scott is your real name." John turned to Wolf angrily. "What the hell have you been telling him now? I thought Sandra said she gave him the antidote? Why can't he remember who he is?"

John made to push Wolf, but a hand from the bed restrained him. "John? Stop. Why would you ..." The injured man never got to finish his sentence as the door opened again. This time it was an officer of the law, and a small group of armed men.

"What the hell?" John swore at the interruption. "What is the meaning of this?" He waved his arm at the men as they came into the room.

"We are here to arrest Scott Tracy on the charges of suspected of terrorism." The officer looked over at the bed in which Scott was lying in, and saw a pale and totally shocked look on Scott's face. He was staring at the three men in disbelief, his brain trying to catch up with what was happening.

The burly officer moved past the two blond haired men standing in front of Scott, and pulled out some hand cuffs.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" John demanded, horror and anger swirling across his face as he realised what the officer was about to do. The look of confusion and sudden fear on Scott's pale face caused John to react as the officer suddenly grabbed Scott's wrist and proceeded to restrain the sick man to the hospital bed, whilst informing him of his rights.

John retaliated without even thinking about what he was doing. He stepped over to the officer, pulling him roughly away from Scott, and then punched the man. The blow threw the man into the wall. Wolf reacted at the same moment and punched the next officer attempting to come in through the door. His fist knocked the man out. As the officer fell back out of the door, he landed on the people waiting outside, making them end up in a heap on the floor.

At that moment the nursing staff rushed into the room, the alarms had sounded as Scott's breathing and heart rate both increased dramatically. At the site of a needle, Scott began to thrash on the bed, and found himself restrained by the cuffs and then by the nurses as well.

"Scott, you must calm down. Please try to take deep breaths. In, out, in, out." The doctor with the syringe gave the young man an apologetic look as he watched the beads of sweat trickling down his face. "I'm sorry, but this will help you to relax."

John grabbed the doctor's arm, he could see the fear in Scott as he eyed the needle in the doctor's hand. "What is that?" John demanded, no one was going to inject his older brother with anything without his consent first.

The doctor looked slightly annoyed as he knew he had to administer the drug before his patient ended up with a heart attack. "It's just Valium, a mild tranquilliser. Please let my arm go."

John did, and even stepped back to give the doctor and nurses better access to his brother.

Then he felt him grabbed from behind, and he went on the defensive again. Wolf had already been restrained, John would not let anyone take his brother away.

The only place Scott was going after he left here was back home. John was ready to fight for it.

TBTBTB

Virgil and Gordon found Parker inside FAB 1.

The chauffeur had been talking to Penelope on a private channel.

He told them that he would drive them back to the hidden Thunderbird Two. But he would be flying with them, and assist with the rescue. They drove was in silence, but the men all knew that once again, lives were at stake and that they were the only people who could help.

Even with the higher than normal risk.

This time their whole family was in danger of being found out.

This time it was their reputation and their identities on the line, not just their lives.

They knew this, but still carried on with what they believed in.

As Parker pulled up, he turned to the two young men just before they exited the car, "Good luck to us, Sirs."

Virgil put a hand on the older man's shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze. "Thanks, Parker." Then they got out the car and headed towards Virgil's beloved machine, with Gordon in the middle and Parker bringing up the rear, after locking up FAB 1.

Parker sighed as he watched the brothers go up to the cockpit, before he turned back to glance at the pink car outside and watch it get smaller as the Thunderbird rose from the ground. His thoughts went back to those left at the hospital, where unbeknownst to him, all hell was breaking loose.

TBTBTB

Jeff met George Kent, his old friend and lawyer outside Scott's room.

"I have sorted out the hospital security. You will have a full apology, and I had the man put on probation for excessive behaviour. No press, as usual." George opened the conversation as they clasp hands. George took a closer look at his client. "Jeff. Are you alright? What's really going on?"

Jeff sighed and straightened his stance. He had dark bags from lack of sleep under his eyes, he looked into Georges face and read the concern written on it. "George, I have never lied to you, about anything. You know everything about our family, if you don't believe what I am about to tell you, then no-one else will..."

George smiled kindly at his friend. "You should have no fear of me, Jeff. I'm on your side and always will be. Now what is wrong?"

Jeff sighed, before looking briefly into Scott's room where John was making Wolf feel uncomfortable. George followed his gaze, and shook his head at the sight of Scott on the hospital bed. "Did a rescue go bad?" He had lowered his voice so only Jeff could hear him.

Jeff shook his head. "To tell you the truth, I'm not sure. It started a few weeks ago..."

George listened with growing disquiet as what had befallen this family over the last few weeks. When Jeff had finished, he felt like some of the weight he had been carrying had finally been lifted.

"At least you have Scott back now. He is a strong man, Jeff. Your whole family is strong. We will sort this out. We'll start with Doctor Sandra, shall we?"

"Yes. I just want to get my boys home. If anyone can sort this mess out, it's you. I should have called you before, but I had other things on my mind..."

George put a reassuring hand on Jeff's shoulder as they entered the room where Scott lay, "I know. But the important thing is, you did call me. Better late than never. I seem to remember you said that to me once..."

They both smiled at the memory.

Together, the two men escorted Sandra away from his sons. He didn't want her anywhere near them - even though she seemed to want to help them now.

George wanted a clear statement and confession from both her and Wolf about what had been done to Jeff Tracy's eldest son. John had gone to get them all coffee, so that had left Wolf alone with Scott. No-one was really happy about it, but they had no choice. But they knew Gordon would be there soon enough with Virgil, so they would keep an eye on things until Jeff had finished clearing up and doing damage control with George.

The press were everywhere.

It was then Jeff saw the police cars arrive, and the armed officers enter the hospital.

It never occurred to him that they were coming for Scott. As far as he knew, they were there to arrest someone else. Maybe Vixen and Weasel had been caught.

With that in mind, while George interviewed Sandra, Jeff carried on with the calls he needed to make. He was so engrossed, that he never even saw FAB 1 leave the car park.

TBTBTB

"Damn it!" The voice of Colonel Williams whispered in the musty cave. He had begun to feel the pain, and was finding it hard to concentrate. The air was getting thin, he was covered in sweat from both pain and lack of oxygen.

"Colonel, you must calm down, Sir." The young Lieutenant Dixen breathed out, equally tired and dirty as his superior officer. He shifted his position to allow the older man more room and to try to give him a little more comfort from the hard rocks they were laying on.

"Boy, my ass has gone numb. What do you expect me to do? Never thought I'd go this way, Laddy."

"It won't be much longer, Sir. I know International Rescue will show up. So should you."

The Colonel grunted, "Stupid ol' dog should know better than to walk into enemy territory! But I guess you may be right, Lad." He coughed a couple of times as the dust clogged up in the back of his throat. "Dang it! They'd better hurry up, or there won't be anything for them to rescue."

"Sir..." The young man worried that the Colonel was giving up, but the older man stopped him with a hand on his leg.

"No, Dixen. Don't say it. All I'm saying is this old dog knows that when all the air is gone, not even I can breathe. If those boys don't get here soon..." He paused as he had to weeze to get anymore words out, "...we will both be sleeping."

There was no answer to that.

They sat in silence.

"Did you hear that?" Dixen suddenly broke the quiet. His voice echoed into silence as they both strained to hear between shallow breaths.

"Yes!" Colonel William's breathed out in excitement.

The sound was distant. A rumbling sound that could be felt in the rocks around them, as well in their ears.

As they waited, the throbbing rumble became louder and more distinctive with each passing second.

"It's them! I knew it!" The Colonel could not keep the smile off his face at the joy in his young officer's voice, and he smiled at the blessing that was International Rescue. He knew the sacrifice had been worth it, even if both he and Dixen had died.

These men were rare. Nothing should be able to stop them from doing what they had been born to do.

Soon the noise was so loud that both men had to cover their ears with their hands. As the silver tip of the Mole ground it's way into the small cavern, both men were sprayed with yet even more dust and small stones.

Light flooded out across the gloomy darkness, and Colonel Williams and Dixen blinked as they tried to see past it. Then they heard voices.

"Colonel Williams, can you hear us? Is anyone there? Dixen?" Gordon called out to them as he exited the machine.

Both men called out to him. "We're here! Sure is good to see you guys!"

"We need help getting out of this rubble."

Gordon carefully made his way over to them, "You two really know how to stir the 'bigwigs' up. It's like a stand-off outside. The Feds on one side of the field, US army on the other side. Us in the middle and Interpol being kept at bay by the World Police! Penny is a gem, she's holding the fort, for now. So the quicker we get you men out of here, and we get away, the better."

He quickly accessed what they needed to get them out as he handed them both oxygen packs, which they gratefully put on their faces.

Another figure emerged from within the Mole.

Gordon turned and called out to him "Parker, can you get the digging machine from the back of the cabin. It's in container number four. Thanks."

"H'F, h'A, B." Parker answered as he turned back inside to fetch the equipment.

TBTBTB

Outside the tunnel where the rescue was taking place was at first glance like a stand-off from a western film.

Groups of different uniformed people standing in position, all waiting to see what would happen when the International Rescue team came out of the tunnel which they had just dug.

The huge green bulk of Thunderbird Two was in the middle of the stand-off, surrounded on all sides.

Virgil sat in the cockpit, his photographic sensors on, waiting with strained patience. As the time ticked by, he wondered just how they would get away without any trouble when Gordon and Parker came back out with the two men they had gone to rescue.

He saw the FBI black tops hovering just the other side of the rise to his left.

On his right were the Interpol guys, looking grim with their dark glasses covering their eyes. They kept talking into their radios and staring between the new tunnel Gordon had made and Thunderbird Two.

Virgil couldn't help but think they were up to something, but had no idea what it would be.

The closest group to the tunnel were with Penny. She had a medical team from the army with her, and a few of the generals from each side. It was a peace offering, a truce between all sides.

Only the World Police seemed to be happy with the situation, but that just made Virgil nervous. What did they know? Or what had they done to be so happy about?

The press reporters were being held at bay too, not even a helijet had passed over, and for that, Virgil was grateful.

He wondered how long it would be before his father found out what they were doing.

Just then, movement from the tunnel alerted all parties to the exiting Mole. As the dust was thrown out of the back of the machine as it reversed the way it had come, Virgil got in contact with Alan.

"Thunderbird Two to Thunderbird Five. I have them in sight. Preparing for loading and take-off."

"Thunderbird Five to Thunderbird Two. FAB, I'll check a clear path for you guys to fly home."

"Thanks. Thunderbird Two out."

Virgil switched channels. "Thunderbird Two to Mole. How are the casualties?"

Parker's voice came back through the radio, "They h'are in need h'of medical care, but happy to be h'alive."

"Good. Prepare to load asap, after you have dropped off the casualties."

"H'F, h'A, B."

Virgil let a small smile escape at Parker's accent. He never could get over how funny the English accent sounded, especially when Parker tried to sound 'posh'. Sometimes he forgot to speak normally, but Virgil guessed that he had worked for Penny for so long that it no longer remembered how he used to speak.

The law enforcers readied themselves for action as the door to the Mole opened and out stepped Dixen, and he helped another man in IR uniform, who had his face covered by a breathing mask, carry out Colonel Williams from the digging machine.

Penny sent the medical crew to assist them. As soon as the two men were clear of the Mole, Gordon and Parker drove the Mole up the ramp into Thunderbird Two. Before the Mole was even inside, Virgil had the ramp closing and the engines of Thunderbird Two fired up and then the huge machine was in the air before anyone could stop them.

Down below there were shouts of both anger and joy.

General Bron had watched from within the tent to see what the International Rescue agents would do, and was not surprised to see them leave so quickly. He smiled. Now he had them scared and the rest of the world were mistrustful of the heroes in blue.

Colonel Williams shouted out orders for his men to assist in the exit of International Rescue, as they were innocent of all charges.

He waved a disk in his hand. "I have all the evidence here!" he shouted before finally passing out. His men did his bidding without hesitation.

To the disappointment of some of the people, the famous green transporting machine disappeared before anyone could stop, picture, or track it.

Gerneral Bron wanted that disk.

It contained all the plans Vixen and Weasel had recorded of their research and activities, up to when the Hood dropped in on them. If he didn't get his hands on that disk, the pilot of his craft would be free of any charges against him. The pilot was needed to fly that craft, and General Bron was not ready to let this project finish just yet.

He nodded at his men to go after the disk.

The pretty blond woman now had it and was being escorted into a waiting World Police vehicle. As it drove away, it was followed by General Bron's men, and Interpol and the FBI.

They all had a common interest. The contents of the disk.

TBTBTB

"This is World News bringing you up to date reports of the World Terrorist's capture. Minute by minute the story unfolds. More suspects arrested. International Rescue involved. Playboy under questioning for involvement. Stay tuned for full report after this break..."

John switched off the television. He'd seen and heard enough. He stood up and returned to pacing the room. Echoing his father, who was at present discussing the release of Scott from the cuffs which were restraining him from leaving his bed.

John scowled.

Not that Scott could just get up and leave anyway. His older brother had been shot, drugged, beaten up, and now they blamed him for everything and had mercilessly chained him to the bed.

John glanced over at the man sat in the chair by the window, his eyes lost to the world outside. Wolf had not spoken since they were put in this room. They had been placed here, but not arrested. Luckily for them, Jeff had appeared on the scene with George Kent, his lawyer who instantly went on the defensive and got both young men off the hook.

They had to stay in this room though, with a guard placed outside the door, so they could not attack anyone else who tried getting close to Scott. He was being questioned up in his room.

John had to find out where Gordon and Virgil were. They had not turned up in Scott's room. He worried they may have been taken or arrested, so he decided to call Alan for an update on their positions.

The phone had been removed from the room. No calls allowed.

John smirked, at least he still had his wrist-com.

"Agent Two to Thunderbird Five."

"Thunderbird Five to Agent Two, what's going on down there? The news reporters are going crazy! Have they arrested one of you guys?"

"The bastards barged in and cuffed Scott. Dad's in talks now to get him released. Have you heard from Gordon or Virgil? I thought they were on their way to see Scott, but they never showed. Any ideas?"

A brief silence before Alan told John that they were up too.

John swore.

Wolf looked up at him from the window, an inquisitive look upon his face.

"Who are you...?" He started to ask, when a glare from John shut him up instantly. Instead he stood up and walked to the door and leant his back to it so no-one could come in. John looked at him in surprise, and a look of gratitude crossed his face before he got on with his talk with Alan.

"So they are home now are they? What about the Hood?"

"Tin Tin and Brains have him ready for transporting to the authorities. International Rescue will deliver him to a place, so Penny can be there to 'pick him up in style'."

"Well that's something. Let me know if anything else crops up. You can listen in on the Police airwaves if you.."

"I know how to do it. Don't worry Joh...Agent Two, we'll get them."

"Alright. Get back to work, kid. Agent Two out."

"FAB."

TBTBTB

The hospital staff had alerted Jeff to the disturbance in Scott's room.

He and George had instantly left what they were doing and rushed to the rescue of his sons.

George was quick and forceful in his approach to having John and Wolf put away, but not locked up. They still needed a confession from Wolf.

Now Jeff and George were in a private office in the hospital, discussing the release of Scott, and John.

Jeff's face turned ashen as the man he was talking to told him why they were holding his sons, that they had reason to believe that they were involved in the World Terrorist attacks.

Jeff sank into the chair, and rubbed a hand over his tired face. "Look. Why would you believe a criminal over me and my sons? We, who have a clean record, and have never asked for anything from anyone, except to be left alone? My eldest son was kidnapped and you want me to believe he went willingly with them because he is their leader? Come on, that's got to be the biggest load of cr... rubbish I have ever heard!"

Jeff's lawyer, George, stood up as well. "Mr Tracy, I believe what the 'gentlemen' are trying to say is," he paused and looked pointedly at the accusers, "Is they have no evidence to prove anything, and so they have to follow all leads. Which happens to include talking to Scott, since his name was mentioned by a known member of the Terrorist group."

Jeff's frown showed he was not pleased with his lawyer's comment about allowing them to question Scott.

But the George was not finished yet.

"This also means that Mr Scott Tracy cannot be arrested until proper evidence is brought forward. Therefore, it is paramount that he is released from the over-excessive restraints placed upon him, and left to recover in peace. When he has recovered from his ordeal, then time will be made for you to talk to him. But not before."

The Law Officers from the World Police were now both standing up as well, and the four men stood up against each other, the table the only thing between them.

Jeff realised that his old friend would never let them down. He waited for George's next move.

"I will do my best to talk both Mr Tracys from pressing charges against you all, very publicly, of course. I don't think the public will warm well to you not only harassing International Rescue, but also the lives of one of America's heroes and his sons. Also accomplished men. I suggest you all walk away, and we shall contact you as to when you can talk to Scott Tracy."

The lawyer walked over to the door, and put his hand on it to open it. "Gentlemen, this meeting is over. Good day."

The officers were shocked, but knew they had no jurisdiction here. Scott Tracy was not going anywhere, he had even won the highest award for bravery whilst in the Air Force. If the press got wind of what they had done, they would be thought to be worse than the terrorists.

Angry, they both strode out of the room, the last man paused at the door. "We will get that evidence for you, and we'll be back. You can count on it."

Then they stormed off down the corridor.

Jeff sat back down heavily in his seat and closed his aching eyes. "Thanks, George. Sometimes I wonder why things always happen to my family."

George looked at his long time employer and friend, "Because you are a great family, living interesting lives. Things will always happen that you have no control over. Let's get up to John and check that he hasn't done any damage to Wolf yet, I still need his confession. Then we can check that Scott has been released."

Giving Jeff his hand, George pulled him out of the chair, and together the two men walked out and made their way upstairs.

TBTBTB

Phew, well thats all for now. Please review and let me know your thoughts...

Once again, a huge THANK YOU to my awesome beta reader, who happily points out all my mistakes!!! And trust me, there are a lot of them!!!


	26. Chapter 26

**First I must say "Sorry!" to everyone who has been waiting for me to finish this story, RL took over and my muse ran off, but now I'm back, and this story WILL be finished very, very soon!**

**Thank you for all your wonderful support. Special thanks again to Quiller!**

**Chapter 26**

The procession of cars sped towards the headquarters of the World Police. Red and blue lights flashed angrily, warning everyone to keep out of their way. No-one dared to disobey them as the vehicles passed on by.

The importance of the disc in Lady Penelope's hand concerned all. It held the freedom of one young man, his only life-line to be forgiven the crimes he had performed. The disc also held the real criminals' identities and their plans past, present and possible future. Someone from within their ranks had made sure that everything they had done and said was recorded.

Penny stared at the disc before popping it into the player in the front of the pink car while she was escorted from all sides. She glanced in the wing mirror and thanked Jeff for making the car soundproof. Nothing annoyed her more than the continued wailing sound of sirens.

The thought of Jeff's sincere care and attention made her smile.

She remembered when Gordon had fixed a police siren to Thunderbird Two. It had shocked Jeff so much that he ordered the instant return of the Thunderbird before it was even one mile away from the Island.

Gordon had paid heavily for that trick. People had almost lost their lives because of the delay.

Sighing, the brief moment of happiness gone as the reality came back to her. Penny carried on and listened to the voices on the disc as she drove, she also patched it through to the anxious people in Thunderbirds Two and Five.

The listeners were not surprised to find that this group of people had in fact known who Scott was, and that he worked for International Rescue. Why the crooks had never threatened to release what they knew was a puzzle to her. Unless the 'terrorists' were only in the 'game' for the money...

When the disc had finished, Penny carefully erased the part that identified Scott Tracy as a member of International Rescue. Now the disc only mentioned that the criminals would try to use one of the skilled pilots from International Rescue or someone with similar talent.

She finished just before the cars pulled to a stop within the secure yard of the headquarters. Putting the disc away, she waited for a man to open the car door for her before she stepped gracefully out and followed her escort into the large building.

A small smile played briefly across her face as she walked knowing the Tracy family's secret was safe once again.

TBTBTBTB

Reporters congregated outside the hospital doors. Extra security had been placed in and around the hospital. It was to stop the unwanted attention from the media interfering with the hard work of the doctors and nurses. It was not easy though, a high price reward had been put out by the television and newspaper companies, awarded to the person who found out the name of the 'play-boy' accused of the attacks.

Everyone wanted to find out.

But no one on the hospital staff was talking. Impatiently, some reporters began to get inventive to try to get past the doors and into the restricted part where the man in question was being 'held'.

Some of them had even resorted to injuring themselves to get into the Accident and Emergency department. They were of course, thrown out. Or shipped to the next closest hospital.

TBTBTB

Scott lay in the hospital bed in a drug induced sleep, comma completely unaware of the excitement his identity was causing.

The handcuffs had been reluctantly removed by the officers after George had threatened them with legal action. Scott was still under arrest, as their only suspect, but given the right to heal in peace, for now.

Jeff was at present in the other room with John, Wolf, George and Sandra. They were going through the proceedings of what had happened to Scott since International Rescue had first come across the terrorist group attacking the security van up in the mountains.

Sandra and Wolf also told them why they had anything to do with the group in the first place. It was a heart rending story, and even John could understand what Wolf was feeling as the tale was told.

Wolf started the story off, with Sandra adding bits and pieces of information she knew - for example the drugs used and how she got hold of them. She told them about how she had been blackmailed by Vixen and Weasel, and her relationship with Wolf's brother.

At that time no-one in the room knew of the disc that Lady Penelope had in her possession. Wolf had forgotten it existed. They had no idea that it contained the same information that they were gathering together.

Jeff, George and John were angry and shocked as the story developed. All three men bordered on the line of being distressed when they found out what Scott had been through since his capture. When they found out how Scott reacted to the drug forced upon him, they fell silent.

The words echoed around each persons head. George cleared his throat and asked "Will you both sign written confessions?"

Wolf and Sandra looked at each other for a second before turning to George at the same time. "We will."

TBTBTB

Inside Scott's head, his mind was whirling once again. He was being forced to watch the events that had happened to him over the last few weeks, his real identity coming back to him amidst the memory play-back. In horror, he watched himself almost shoot his brothers down from inside the jet he was piloting. He saw the devastation of firing the missiles on the World naval ship. He remembered how great he felt doing it, and it made him feel sick.

But his mind seemed to be detached from his body - and the monitors continued their steady pulsing to his heart beat, not letting the people who could help him escape this nightmare by waking him up.

A few floors below from where Scott was, his father was also in distress. It had got to the point where Jeff could no longer sit and listen to what his eldest son had been through. He needed to be by Scott's side, so he made an excuse and left the room.

George was busy getting statements from Wolf and Sandra, under the watchful eye of John. Both men kept their tempers in check as the story continued to unfold. John knew if Scott ever found out what he had been forced to do, he would be devastated.

As Sandra got to the end of the tale, John couldn't help but ask her, "What was that last injection you gave to my brother?"

Everyone looked at her in silence.

She swallowed, and whispered "It was the antidote. It will take Pheonix...I mean Scott, back to when he was given the first dose, and iron out the memories. He will know who he is." She looked guiltily at John, as she continued to tell him about the side effects of the antidote. "He will also remember everything he has done. It will come to him in flashbacks, taking him right to the moment as if he was living it all again. I'm sorry, but it was the only way to save him."

Her answer was bitter sweet. John would get his older brother back - memories all correct. But what about Scott? How would he react to the knowledge of what he had done?

John glared at her as he stood up abruptly, and she looked away.

"John, calm down. We can get Scott all the help he needs. He is a strong-willed young man, and we will help him get through this." George turned to Sandra. "Are there any other side effects that you failed to mention?"

She shook her head no. "Only that someone should stay with him all the time whilst the memories come back. He will most likely be in a flashback state for a few weeks. As long as he is awake and not sedated or anything and he has the support of someone to counteract his feelings, he'll be fine."

John caught his breath in his throat, as did George. "Damn!" John dashed out of the room, startling the men guarding the door and practically ran back through the hospital to the room where his brother was being forced to live through his very own real life nightmare.

On his own.

TBTBTB

Jeff looked down at his eldest son as the dark haired man lay on the hospital bed seemingly peaceful under the induced sleep.

Scott shifted slightly on the bed. The bleached white sheet covering him slipped off, revealing his pale frame. Jeff watched as Scott stilled and then with a shaking hand he pulled the sheet back over his son, covering the dark bruises displayed on Scott's body.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Jeff could bear the silence no longer. He just couldn't seem to settle and knew he needed to take a break,. It was unnatural for his eldest to be so still. Not in control. Jeff needed to get out for a breath of air, and a quick coffee before he resumed his watch over his boy.

As Jeff opened the door, a nurse followed by an aged doctor came into the room. The nurse smiled at him from under her face mask and nodded her head at him. Jeff could not even move his lips to smile in return, but nodded his head once and left the room. Her green eyes pierced his, and he felt he had seen them before. He tried to get them out of his mind as he walked away.

The doctor walked over to the patient laying on the bed, and put his hand on Scott's throat, feeling the pulse under his fingers. He turned to glance at the nurse who was standing by the door, which was slightly ajar. He nodded his head sharply at her, and she opened the door to retrieve a wheelchair which they had left outside in the corridor.

As the nurse pushed the chair over to the bed, the doctor pulled a small device out of his pocket and attached it to the machinery that kept a track of Scott's condition. Then he started to disconnect the wires that were joining it to Scott.

The nurse was fidgeting.

" 'Urry, up! 'zomone will come in a minute. We 'ave to get 'im out of 'ere now."

"If we mess this up, the entire nursing staff will be here in seconds. Calm down. Keep an eye out for the family." Weasel told Vixen to get her out of his hair and give him some space.

She moved over to the door and peeked out. "Et was a great idea to get 'im this way. With all 'ze fuss 'ze press are making, keeping 'ze security busy, et will give us a chance to get out 'ze back door!"

Weasel grunted as he pulled Scott up off the bed and into a sitting position. Scott's head fell forward and his forehead rested on Weasel's shoulder. The young man never even stirred.

TBTBTB

John raced along the corridor, the other three following him as best they could. A few people objected as he rudely pushed past the throng of people scattered about the hospital.

Jeff had only got to the corner when he realised that it bothered him too much to continue walking away. He never saw her face. But her eyes, and the way she looked at him almost smugly, made his heart prick in warning. Not able to leave his son, Jeff abruptly turned and retraced his steps to Scott's room.

Jeff pushed the door open and to his horror he saw his son being man-handled into a wheelchair. Weasel and Vixen stopped suddenly at the intrusion. Both were now recognised by Jeff.

"You!" He exclaimed, recognising her from the pictures Penny had sent them.

Vixen swore in French and pulled out a gun, aiming it at Jeff.

Jeff froze.

"You don't want to do this." Jeff spoke quietly. He jumped back into commander mode naturally. Everything he had felt over the last few weeks was coming to the surface. It shone on his face. Though his words were softly spoken, they held a very real threat.

Weasel saw it instantly and swallowed his nervousness away. His daughter was the one holding the gun, they had this man's son. They held all the cards. This man could do nothing to stop them without getting himself killed.

Vixen pulled the mask off her face and grinned wickedly at Jeff, her thoughts echoing her father's.

"We know 'who' you are Mr Tracy. We know 'what' you are." She held the gun steady as she let her words wave over the aged looking man in front of her. He did not look surprised though.

Vixen was taken back by the new look he gave her. He was determined. He was confident.

He was deadly.

With a hesitant look back at her own father, Vixen wanted to see what he was thinking. Weasel held this man's son in his arms, she had a gun pointing at his face and Jeff Tracy was not worried?

What was wrong with that?

Had she overlooked something?

Jeff's voice took her away from her thoughts.

"Put the gun down. We both know you are not a murderer, not from this distance at least."

"What do you mean?" She retorted back. "I am 'ze one with 'ze gun! I tell you what to do!"

"You're trapped. You are inside the hospital, surrounded by guards who will shoot first and ask questions later - if you survive. To get out of here, you have to get past me first and you will have to kill me to do that. Do you think a gunshot going off inside this room will not alert the men standing outside it?"

Weasel knew the man was right, and he was about to answer when shouts were heard from outside the room, and John suddenly burst in, with two armed guards behind him.

"Shit!" John exclaimed in shock as he skidded to a halt. This was not what he had been expecting. A stand off between his father and two of the kidnappers. The guards had tried to stop John from running around the hospital in such a panic, and instinctively followed.

The guards pushed their way past the two Tracys and raised their own weapons at Vixen and Weasel.

"John!" Jeff called out "Stand still."

"Yes, Sir." John replied, then narrowed his gaze upon truth of the situation for the first time.

Vixen, with the gun still in her hand, now seemed unsure who to point it at. She hovered between Jeff, the guards and John.

"Move back! All of you, move back out of 'ze room, or I'll shoot." She tried to keep her voice calm, but she felt like a caged animal.

Jeff knew she was scared from the way the gun trembled slightly in her hand. She might even accidentally fire it if someone made her jump. Her eyes began to take on a wild look as she kept flickering them across the four men stood in front of her.

"You cannot get out of here without being shot. Think about it. You fire that gun, either one or both of these guards will shoot you down before you even finish pulling the trigger. Put the gun down. Slowly." Jeff coaxed her calmly.

Vixen's mind was whirling. How the hell did it all go wrong? Things were going perfectly to plan. Then it dawned on her. The Hood. It was him, he was the one who brought all the trouble their way. Damn him!

They had miscalculated how clever International Rescue were. That was the Hood's downfall. And their own for trusting General Bron in the first place.

They had never meant for it to go this far, all they wanted was the money. The gun waived in her hand as her confidence sunk.

"That's right. Put the gun down. Nice and easy." Jeff gently encouraged her. It seemed to be working.

Everyone in the room except for Scott held their breath as she suddenly raised the gun up and spun around to aim it at Scott, who was half in the chair and half in Weasel's arms.

"If we can't 'ave him, 'zen no-one will!"

Vixen's finger began to pull the trigger, even as a few voices called out "No!" including that of her own father.

BANG

BANG

BANG

Three shots fired almost as one.

In the silence that followed the faint echo as the gunshots faded, John realised that he was crying. The tears slipped down his face as he collapsed to his knees beside his father. Deja vu of what had happened hours earlier plagued his mind.

All around him was movement, voices and screams in the distance. Then he felt and saw nothing as the light faded and the floor came rushing up to greet him.

TBTBTB

Up in Thunderbird Five, Alan's mind reeled from the fact that the terrorists knew so much about them.

His father, his brothers and their operatives had always been so careful to keep the secret safe.

But even though the terrorists' information was mostly speculation, the criminals were right about everything. So what had stopped them from trying to get the technology of International Rescue for themselves? Or from blackmailing his father for money to keep the criminals silent about what they knew?

Perhaps there was another reason for the fact they never contacted International Rescue. They already had an amazing hypersonic jet, and they had Scott Tracy. A member of International Rescue, and the eldest son of Jeff Tracy.

Perhaps the terrorists wanted to use their knowledge of International Rescue for another time, or to bribe Scott to work for them...

Alan absently listened to the radio waves, for any news being released of the events that Gorden, Virgil and Parker had just accomplished. They were at present en route to get the Hood off Tracy Island.

"...just in! Guns shots have been heard from within the hospital here in Pheonix. No one seems to know what is going on. It may be the terrorists trying to escape with their playboy friend..."

Alan's curiosity was piqued and he turned that channel up.

"...There's someone coming out! Sir, sir! Can you tell us what just happened? Who fired the shots inside? Was it the terrorists? Who is the man being held?..."

The television camera swung towards the man making a stand by the doors. It was George. He held up his hands until the mob of reporters were quiet.

"About 10 minutes ago inside the room of the ... suspect, three guns were fired. At this time I can only inform you that two people are now dead." The reporters all started shouting at once. George held up his hands for silence and once they were, he continued. "At this time I am unable to release any further details..."

The crowd went wild, they surged forward, and the security moved in between George and the reporters as he made his retreat back into the hospital.

TBTBTB

Jeff had watched in slow motion as Vixen turned the gun on his dark haired son. As if in a dream, he saw her pull the trigger as Weasel released Scott from his arms and people around him shouted out "No!".

Bang.

Vixen's shot hit flesh. Weasel's eyes widened in shock, before he tried to speak as he fell on top of Scott's unmoving body.

Bang.

Bang.

Vixen's body jerked twice and then froze as the two bullets from the guard's guns entered her body. One on the side of her head, the other through her heart from her back.

Blood splattered the walls in front and beside her. The crimson drops sprayed across the once-gleaming white seemed to shine in the bright lights of the room.

Jeff swallowed hard. He felt rather than saw John collapse next to him. But for the first time in his life, Jeff Tracy could not move. He was glued to the spot.

He kept replaying the last few seconds in his head. His son was alive. If he didn't know better, he would say the man had saved Scott's life and let his partner take his own life instead. It was as if he knew the second she turned that he could not stop her, and that they were both dead anyway.

The next thing Jeff knew, he was being led out, as more people entered the room. Vaguely he heard George, Jeff helped him pull up John from the ground and the three of them were taken to another room.

Wolf and Sandra stood at the door of Scott's room. They were stunned, then Sandra pushed past the people in her way to get to her blackmailers. Falling to her knees she threw her arms around herself and cried.

Medical staff entered the room, and carefully wheeled Scott to another location.

The officers who had tried to arrest Scott earlier arrived on the scene. One covered his mouth to stop himself from throwing up. Wolf turned to them, and in a strangled voice he said "It's my fault. All of this. I have already given a statement. I'm ready to turn myself in."

Shocked by his words, but glad that they finally had someone to arrest, they had him escorted out.

TBTBTB

As George arrived back in the building, he saw Wolf handcuffed and being led towards the exit between four armed guards. Wolf looked up at him briefly, winked and half smiled. George gave him a slight nod, and knew that the man had given himself up.

Wolf could finally be at peace with himself.

As the doors opened, George could hear the reporters shouting and the cameras flashing. Shaking his head, he felt like the man had just walked out into shark invested waters.

TBTBTB

A few hours later

John and Jeff sat next to Scott's bedside. Penny stood looking out of the window.

Scott had been woken out of his sleep. His eyelids were set at half mast, his haunted blue eyes were distant as he continued to relive his nightmares.

Every now and then, his body would twitch, and then he would grip the sheets until his nails cut his skin through them. His whole body would tense up, then his father and brother spoke to him, repeating "It was not your fault" and "There was nothing you could have done to prevent it" and "You're safe now". But Scott knew. He knew they just spoke words. Words of emptiness.

Scott felt betrayed.

Scott felt lost.

Like he had lost something, or someone important to him. He just didn't know what or who.

Scott was not in control.

He hated it, and it scared him. He had lost all control. Of his feelings, his thoughts, and his life.

His body began to tremble as the emotions took over him, and he lost another battle as tears began to flow from his eyes.

John and Jeff glanced at each other and saw that they both were crying silent tears of their own. Penny watched from the window, and decided to leave the men their privacy.

She stepped outside the door to make sure no-one would disturb the men within.

Sighing, she knew the disc had been found just in time. When she saw Wolf arrive at the headquarters, she had to find out what had happened. Within ten minutes of Wolf being questioned, she was on her way to the hospital to see the Tracys.

Looking behind her through the little window in the door, she took matters into her own hands. There was only one way for the family to heal. They would need each other.

She had to get them back to Tracy Island as soon as possible.

She caught up with George and told him her plan to get the Tracys home. He readily agreed. Closing the door of the small office George had been using, she picked up the phone.

Penny called Alan first. "Alan. We need a diversion. I need Virgil to fly the Tracy jet here to pick up your family. Get Gordon to drop him off at the hanger where Jeff left Tracy One. Then Gordon needs to give us time, a small diversion perhaps, to get out of this hospital without any reporters knowing."

Alan smiled for the first time that day.

"Sure thing Penny. I think Gordon has the perfect ... plan!"

"FAB. Call me when Virgil is nearly here, so I can get everyone ready to leave."

FAB. Thanks Penny. For everything." He said sincerely.

She smiled back at him. "Any time my dear Alan. Any time."

TBTBTB

Next chapter should be up by the end of the week!

All comments welcome!

Hob x


	27. Chapter 27 Epilogue

Well, here you have it...the end of what has turned out to be a much, much longer story than I first set out to do.

Thank you to everyone for all their comments, reviews, advise and support, I could not have finished it without you! Special thanks go to my awesome Beta 'Quiller'... THANK YOU ;)

Please enjoy!

**Epilogue**

Tracy Island - 2 months later

Jeff stood in his usual place just outside the lounge windows, on the balcony. It was the only position where he had full view of the swimming pool and part of the sandy beach, without having to move position.

He lent heavily on the wooden railing and took a sip of the large glass of scotch he held in his hand. The amber liquid burnt its way down his throat and heat flooded his empty stomach. Jeff watched Gordon as he completed his sixtysixth length of the pool without stopping.

The strength of his second youngest son never failed to amaze him. Gordon glided powerfully through the water, barely making a splash as he swam from one side of the pool to the other. Disappearing for a second under the blue surface as he turned to kick off the wall, only to repeat the action at the other end.

Jeff admired Gordon's technique and skill in the water, and smiled as he remembered how much effort and determination Gordon had put into getting himself ready to be able to compete in the Olympic Games, after his devastating accident.

The support of the whole family had helped Gordon through that time, and Jeff suddenly found himself once again wishing that Lucy could have been around then, just as he wished she was here with him right now.

He felt a presence behind him and turned to find his aged mother standing there regarding him with wise eyes, and an almost disapproving look upon her face when she noticed the drink in his hand.

"Not now, Mother." Jeff stated quietly, before she could reprimand him for drinking so early in the day. He turned away from her back to the spectacular view of his family home.

His island.

He let out a sigh as the old woman came up to stand beside him and linked her arm through his. She could hear the tiredness in his voice, see the dejected position of his body. She rested her head just below his shoulder.

He needed comfort too.

Jeff looked down at her, surprised by her action. Before he could say anything, his mother spoke first. "Jefferson, I know how strong you like to appear in front of those boys, but inside you are just as emotionally wrung out as the rest of us."

Jeff swallowed hard.

He was not going to cry. Not in front of his mother. He felt his face heat up, and he looked towards the ocean, trying to collect his thoughts. He took another gulp of the amber liquid, emptying the once full glass.

"My poor son. You have been through so much. I wonder if the boys would have turned out so well, if Lucy had been around? Would you have spent as much time with them now if she had survived? How many other lives would have been lost, if she still lived?"

Her words were on the edge of being cruel.

Jeff slammed his glass down hard on the wooden rail, sudden anger coursing through his veins. The sudden knock echoed loudly, scaring some tropical birds out of a nearby tree.

Ruth looked up at her son's face in concern. "Jeff, you love those boys. We all do. But wishing Lucy was here to clear up the mess, to do the emotional talks with them. It is not going to help anyone." She squeezed his arm, and turned him to face her. "Don't give up now, Son. They need you, just as much as you need them. Don't shut them out. This is our family, not a military camp."

Jeff shook his head gently, as if to clear it. How his mother always seemed to know what he was thinking never ceased to make him wonder...it had been the same with Lucy, she had always known him so well.

He calmed himself as his thoughts drifted back to his boys. His mother's voice broke through his pondering.

"You know your children as well as I know you. You are their father. Go to them, Jeff. Bring this family back together. They are the building blocks, but you are the cement that holds this family close. Go. Scott has been pushing us all away for far to long. Go and round up the others and bring that boy back. He belongs with us."

Jeff looked deep into the depths of his mother's eyes, and saw the belief she had in him reflecting back. His mother was rarely wrong, not that Jeff would admit that out loud. Jeff smiled genuinely for the first time in weeks. He left his glass on the railing, and put both his hands on her frail shoulders. He bent down and kissed her fore-head. "Thank you, Mother. You're right. I'll do it now. We are stronger together, I won't let Scott push us out anymore."

He left her standing there with a big knowing smile playing on her face. Kyrano appeared from inside the lounge as Jeff walked confidently past without seeing him.

"Did it work?" He enquired to the old woman.

"Like a charm, my dear Kyrano. Let us watch the healing begin." They both turned back to the view of Gordon swimming below them.

TBTBTB

Two brothers sat on the same beach.

One on the sand, his tanned legs stretched out in front of him. Every few minutes he would glance a sneaky look towards the cliff top, searching out the lost soul. Then he let out a sigh of his own hopelessness.

The other brother lent back against the rocks nearby, his light blond hair swaying gently in the breeze. His thoughts drifted and absently he knew this was what he would miss when he finally had to go back to Thunderbird Five. Something as simple as a breath of fresh air.

The brothers sat in each other's silence, taking in the unusual quiet time that they had been allowed by their commander and father to recover from the resent episode.

The family had hoped that after they got Scott back on the island, things would go back to normal - or at least, what was normal for their family.

They were wrong.

Things had changed. They had changed, not just Scott, but all of them.

There was a dark cloud was hanging over the Island. No-one could relax, no-one gave a real smile. Though the sun was shinning up in the clear blue sky, it just seemed to taunt them with the fact that they could not glow equally under its false radiance.

John swung his gaze to look upon his younger brother as Virgil let out yet another heartfelt sigh.

John let out a sigh of his own. "Is he still up there?"

Virgil didn't even look at John to answer, he just kept staring out to the ocean. "Yeah. Not moved for the last four hours." He let out another sigh of discontent. "It's been two months! Two months, John. He hasn't said a word. Not a damn thing!"

Virgil felt his temper rising as he let John know how he was feeling. No-one talked about what had befallen the family, nearly destroying International Rescue and tearing the family apart. The Tracy men tried to avoid the subject as if it never happened.

Only the women in their lives had broached the subject. But they had one by one been given the cold shoulder.

Penny had tried to get Jeff to talk to Scott or get him professional help shortly after they all got back to the Island from the hospital. She and Parker had arrived for the week, only to find that the usual happy atmosphere on the tropical island had changed. For the worse.

When she got her first look at Scott Tracy since he was allowed out of the med-bay, she was shocked to see that he was a shadow of his former self. He was obviously still having problems with his memories. She would see him glance occasionally at his father, with fear in his eyes, then he would search out to the shadows to look for...what, she could only guess.

He had lost weight, and that was not just because he was still recovering from his ordeal, but he had a haunted look in his eyes. The dark rings around his eyes told the fact he was not sleeping either.

Penny could see that the eldest Tracy boy needed help, and soon. Scott was always the one to shut down and hide his feelings from the others. But this was eating him alive. From the look of it, his lack of recovery was effecting the whole family.

TBTBTB

Scott stood rigidly upon the cliff top, his gaze vacant as he stared out over the clear blue ocean. He was healing physically.

But mentally was a completely different matter.

He was sleeping at night - and that was only because he had strong sleeping tablets to take. But when he woke up, every morning was the same. The past events would suddenly bombard his brain. Every morning after waking from the drug induced slumber he felt the same guilt hit him in the stomach like an icy punch, leaving him empty of feeling as he tried to ignore the fact that any of it had happened.

He hated the way he seemed to stumble on his life in the morning, hated the haunted look in his reflection so much that he no longer even looked at the man he once knew in the mirror.

How could he live with himself, knowing the truth of what had happened to him?

What he had done was unforgivable.

He was a murderer.

Scott felt he should have been locked away in jail. Not just his older brother...no, not his older brother. Wolf was not his brother, but one of the people who did this to him.

Scott shook his head in dismay. Why did he still get confused between the truth and the lies?

His real family and friends had come to his 'rescue'; after all, that was what they did best. Only this time, Scott felt, they had been too late. People had been hurt because of him. Because he was too weak to fight the drugs given to him. To weak to avoid capture, and he remembered how he felt pressing the trigger of the jet. Hell, he was going to shoot his younger brothers down, and even enjoyed the adrenalin rush when he was doing it.

The praise Scott got from his older brother...no, Wolf seemed to be the most important thing to 'him' - Pheonix. Somehow, even though the drugs were gone from Scott's body, and he knew who he really was, who his family are, Scott found himself having to push his alter ego away, because 'Pheonix' kept threatening to take over from 'Scott'.

TBTBTB

Thunderbird Five was on auto.

Alan had come home a few days after his father and elder siblings were home and settled. Alan kept himself busy listening in on what was happening in the aftermath of the horrid events that could have destroyed International Rescue, and his family.

Now he was back on the Island. Tintin was busy helping her father and Brains take care of Scott. They monitored his condition, not just his recovering body, but his messed up mind as well.

Alan observed his brothers as they each seemed to fall away from each other, each one of them blaming himself for what had happened.

Alan saw, and yet said nothing.

Alan knew something was up when his father contacted him through his wrist watch. "Alan. Come up to my study. Wait for the rest of us to get there."

"Yes, father."

Alan quickly put away the tools he was using to check the circuits of Thunderbird Three, and moved away from his beloved 'bird to the lift which would take him up to the main house.

TBTBTB

Gordon tried to forget that it was because of him that Scott was first injured by the group. If he had not called Scott by his real name, perhaps none of this never would have happened. The more Gordon pushed his arms through the water as he swam, he tried to forget. He hoped that the more he swam, the more the guilt would wash away.

He was wrong.

He was about to push of from the side after his seventieth length when he heard his father call him. Gordon paused in his turn, with his head above the water and was surprised to see his father standing directly next to the pool.

"Gordon. Get out of the pool, get dressed and go to my study. Wait with the others there for me."

"Yes, sir!" Gordon answered without thinking. Then suddenly it hit him, his father had not requested a family meeting since Scott left the medical bay, and it was the first time he had seen Jeff come out of the house for a long while.

Sure that something was going to happen, and hoping he had done nothing wrong, Gordon swiftly pulled himself out of the water and grabbed his towel. Making his way inside to dry, he wondered what his father wanted to see them about.

TBTBTB

Jeff walked out into the gardens and decided to call his next two sons before climbing the cliff to find Scott.

He knew where they all were. He had kept a close eye on all of them since they got back. It seemed he had become overprotective. He had put International Rescue on stand-by. He needed to give them, and himself a break.

He felt he could no longer put his sons in danger.

"John, is Virgil with you?" He already knew the answer, but didn't want them to know that he knew.

"Yes, father. Is something wrong?" John answered, casting a glance at Virgil who shrugged back.

"No. I want you both to report to my study now. Wait for me to get there."

"Yes, father. We'll head up there right away."

Virgil pushed himself up and held his hand out to pull John up as well. "I wonder what he wants us for."

"No idea. Maybe he wants us to start going out on calls again. I mean, it's been two months with no International Rescue. I wonder how Scott will react."

"Yeah," was Virgil's soft reply. He missed Scott just as much now as when he wasn't here. Looking up at the cliff again, he saw the shape of his brother still there.

"Come on. Let's go see what the old man wants." John tried to make light of it, but he felt there was nothing 'light' to come of it.

Silently the two brothers walked back to the house side by side.

TBTBTB

The four brothers congregated in Jeff's study.

Virgil stood with his back to the others, looking out of the window. Gordon paced the room, like a prowling tiger. Alan sat on the sofa, while John leant on Jeff's desk.

No-one spoke.

No-one really knew what to say.

After what seemed an eternity, the study door suddenly opened and in came Grandma Tracy carrying a tray full of freshly made cookies, behind her was Kyrano with a tray of drinks.

They set them down on the desk and then Grandma looked at the boys. It appeared to her that there was one 'boy' in each corner of the room. Not standing together in support, but far away from each other as they could be.

She sighed, and then spoke. "Boys. You need to stop this nonsense. The next one of you who does not listen, comfort, stand by or help his family will be taken over my knee and spanked!"

She would have laughed at their reactions if it had not been so serious.

All four had identical looks of wide eyes and open mouths.

"Close your jaws boys, before you swallow a fly!"

Still no response.

"Eat the cookies!" Her tone of voice changed to one not to be messed with, and the four adults rushed over to the tray and they started eating.

Smirking, she and Kyrano left them to it.

Standing just outside the door, she listened to them as they chewed and couldn't help but agree with each other that she made the best cookies in the world. Then came the banter and it seemed to lift the cloud hanging over them as they began to feel like brothers again.

TBTBTB

Scott stood rigid on the top of the cliff.

He stared out across the ocean, but his eyes saw nothing.

The sound of the sea would have been calming, the birds chirping in the trees, and the wildlife rustling around him should have made him look about to see what was there.

But he could not hear them.

He shut everything out.

He was just a shell, a shell full of pent up emotion of guilt and anger. At himself, his family, his captors, the world.

In his grief, he had lost himself. It was in those precious moments he had spent alone in hospital under sedation that the most damage had been done. He had been alone to take the full brunt of what had happened.

He could not escape it.

Scott could still feel Pheonix inside of him, and Scott fought to stay himself.

Scott never even noticed his father standing behind him.

Not even when his father reached out and put a hand on his shoulder, after Scott had not reacted to Jeff talking to him.

Once Scott's reaction would have been instant. But when his son turned around sluggishly to face him, Jeff took in a sharp breath at the emptiness on Scott's face.

"Son." Jeff started, but was unsure how to go on. He needed to get Scotts attention. "Scott, I need to talk to you about the future of ..." He took another breath. "..Of International Rescue."

The words penetrated Scott's brain.

The words 'International Rescue' had not so long ago been programmed to bring fear to him. He had, for a while as 'Pheonix', hated the organization, not knowing that it was all a lie from his captors.

Scott focused his eyes on his father, and took in the haggard appearance, the way his father was searching his face with soulful, troubled eyes.

This was his fault. Scott made his father look this way. Scott blinked slowly, and shook his head to try to clear it. As Scott mentally slipped, Pheonix took over.

Jeff raised his arm and squeezed Scott's shoulder again, this time Scott's reaction was very different.

"Don't touch me!" Scott stumbled back, away from the touch. It was just like when Wolf used to try and reassure him. He did the same when he wanted to put fresh lies in Nix's head...no Scott's head...

Scott groaned and sunk to his knees as he cradled his head in his hands, trying to block out the memories invading him once again.

"Scott!" Jeff cried out in a panic. He had no idea why Scott reacted that way so suddenly, only that it was connected to the kidnapping somehow. "Scott, its me, you're father. Your safe. You are on Tracy Island, your home. Look at me Scott. Trust me son, come on." Jeff urged Scott to look up, without touching him. "Scott, you're strong. You need to fight this. Don't let it beat you. Trust me, trust your family."

Jeff's words washed over him. Scott's face screwed up as he tried to block out what his father was telling him. It felt like he was being pulled in two directions. To be Scott Tracy, heir to the Tracy industries and International Rescue or be 'Nix' and care about nothing and no-one except Wolf, and flying that awesome jet plane.

Scott felt himself tearing up inside.

Jeff's voice continued to penetrate his thoughts.

"...your brothers need you. You are loved here, you belong to this family..."

Scott shut out the words again and sat back on his heels, leaning away from his father. He was closer to the edge on two accounts. He was very close to the edge of the cliff, and he was very close to having a complete breakdown.

"...underbird One. I never meant for any of this to happen, Scott. Your mother wanted the best for you all. I tried. I tried so god damn hard to give you all that..."

Jeff's voice faded again, but Scott found himself wanting to hear what his father was saying, so he pushed Pheonix away hard. Scott had never heard his father confess his feelings from when his mother had died.

"...broke me. I had you. I relied on you, son. Without you we would have been doomed..."

"...shut down International Rescue..."

"...up to you now..."

"..our brothers are waiting for us.."

Scott opened his eyes, not sure if what he was hearing was correct, seeing on how his hearing seemed to pick up bits and pieces of what his father was saying to him.

"Huh?" Was all Scott could manage to say. His voice unused and rough sounding.

Jeff paused in his mini speech to realise he finally had Scott's attention.

Jeff cleared his throat and repeated himself. "Scott. I can't continue with this life anymore." He looked Scott in the eyes, holding his attention. "I will, if you want me too, shut down International Rescue. This life has taken it's toll on all of us. But I'll leave the decision to you. Its only up to you now if you want us to carry on. I'll not ask you to go out on a mission again, if you don't want to." Jeff rushed the last part. "Your brothers are waiting for us in my study..."

Scott was stunned.

His father had said what Scott had never thought he would ever hear, and it sobered him up, as if someone had just electrocuted him.

"W..wh..what?" Scott stuttered breathlessly. "Y..you can't...I mean..w..why?"

Slowly put his hand on Scott's arm and helped Scott up from the ground and away from the edge of the cliff.

"Son, to save this family has always been the highest priority on my list. Sometimes I guess it doesn't seem like it, but it is. International Rescue saved us every time we saved someone. But after this 'breach', I just don't know if it's worth it anymore..."

Scott opened his mouth to answer, but Jeff carried on.

"How many people have to die and hurt in our name? You've made mistakes, we all have. That's okay because we all have to find forgiveness. We are only human. I want to know... will you forgive mine?"

Scott was so shocked he didn't know what to say.

His father was Jeff Tracy, astronaut and multi billionaire. He was a 'God' in many people's eyes, and here he was admitting he was...not. Admitting he make mistakes.

Scott whispered out to him, "How do you do it? How do you carry on? Don't you ever cry?" Scott looked away, then disgust flared from within him "This is all your fault!" Scott suddenly shouted out, angry now, that his father was once again putting the weight on his shoulders. "What do you want from me? Haven't I done enough?"

Tears poured down Scott's face, and Jeff lurched forward and grabbed Scott in a hug, wrapping his arms around his eldest son as if to protect him from the world.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Scott. For everything." Jeff murmured in his ear. "Please forgive me. But I only know how to fight. I want to do what is right. Can you help me?"

Scott tried to stop his sobs, but his whole body shock from the force of his overwhelming emotions. As exhaustion began to take over, Jeff allowed Scott's knees to buckle and gently helped lower his son to the ground.

"Your going to be Ok, son. We'll do this, but we'll do it all together."

As Scott regained control of himself, he still had his doubts. He could not look his father in the face, partly to do with the fact that the man still held him tightly, and the rest because Scott was afraid what he would see if he did open his eyes. Who would be holding him? His father, or Wolf.

"Okay. It's going to be okay." Scott repeated the words to himself in his head. No longer were the voices and memories tormenting him. He was thinking about the future. He was needed, and wanted by his family. His father's actions spoke louder than any words from anyone else.

Sighing, he felt Jeff loosen his hold, looking up into his father's face, he saw he had tears in his eyes too. "International Rescue stays, Father. We need to re-group."

Jeff smiled proudly at Scott. The effort it took for him to say that made his heart swell.

"Alright son. Lets go and tell your brothers."

Jeff helped Scott up, and together they made their way slowly back to the house.

TBTBTB

Inside the study, the brothers had been left for over an hour.

Left to their own devices they ate all the cookies first, then started picking on Alan, because he was the easiest target, but then Gordon decided to come to his side-kick's rescue, and so it was a fair verbal match of young men being cooped up too long with nothing else to do.

They brought up old memories of stupid and embarrassing things each had done when they were kids, and were soon laughing out loud. Something that had been missed in the last few months on the island.

Their laughter brought smiles to Grandma Tracy, Tintin and Kyrano who were in the next room listening.

When the study door opened again, the room was suddenly enveloped in silence. In through the door walked Jeff and beside him was Scott.

They all stared at each other quietly, before Jeff cleared his throat.

All eyes were upon him.

"Okay, boys. Thunderbirds are go!" Jeff stated, a proud gleam shinning in his eyes.

After the initial shock, there were yells and squeals (though no-one would admit to it) of joy, and the brothers welcomed Scott back into their lives and he accepted them without any hesitation.

In the room next door, the three conspirators hugged each other in glee.

THE END


End file.
